


Did You Notice?

by yungmenace



Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: F/M, Older Man/Younger Woman, Porn With Plot, Porn with Feelings, Post-Weirdmageddon, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-21
Updated: 2021-02-27
Packaged: 2021-03-09 03:00:39
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 26,425
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27057607
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yungmenace/pseuds/yungmenace
Summary: ford lets himself fall in love.(self-indulgent ford pines fic because i just finished rewatching gf for the millionth time and finally played the grunkle dating sim and it reminded me how much i love ford)
Relationships: Ford Pines/Reader, The Author | Original Stanford Pines/Reader
Comments: 29
Kudos: 155





	1. Chapter 1

You had come to Gravity Falls in search of mystery. After graduating from college, you had wanted to travel the world looking for unsolved mysteries and doing whatever you could to solve them. Gravity Falls was the first place you went, and there was enough mystery there to last years. 

The town was filled with anomalies. It was what the place was known for, after all, especially after the mysterious events of the previous year. What the majority of the town said "Nevermind all that" to, but what some people called Weirdmageddon, was something you'd been glad to live through. You had experienced the biggest anomaly in the world, possibly even the universe, and despite the fact that no one wanted to talk about it, you'd found enough of the aftermath that you'd been perfectly happy to just research it.

Although after a year of having no one to talk to about what happened, you were pretty pent up. You wanted to find someone, anyone, who was as interested in what happened as you. But whenever you brought it up, all you got was dismissal.

The twins that had supposedly saved the town only lived in Gravity Falls during the summer, and their great-uncle had left town at the end of summer. You supposed you could talk to the new owner of the Mystery Shack, but he didn't seem to be all that interested in the scientific aspect of the past summer. So you waited for summer to come again, and with it, the return of the Pines family.

Their return was loud, but that was to be expected of that family. You'd met Stan, or Mr. Mystery as he introduced himself to you. The kids, Dipper and Mabel, worked at the Shack that summer and were frequently found causing trouble around town. They were sweet kids, and you wished you'd spent more time with them because they seemed to know more than they let on. You were glad that they decided to come back the next summer, along with their great-uncle. 

You'd made your way to the Shack as soon as you heard they were back in town. You explained to Stan that you wanted to talk to the kids about the events of the previous summer as part of your research and they seemed more than happy to oblige, which you were also expecting.

What you weren't expecting was another great-uncle. You'd heard something about another person moving into the Shack towards the end of last summer, but you had no idea it was Stan's brother. You assumed it was his brother, considering they looked almost exactly the same. 

Except... His brother looked more serious. Like he had seen a completely different world than Stan or anyone else. As Mabel led you out of the Shack with her brother so you all could talk, you couldn't help but steal a glance at the new Pines twin.

"Oh that's our Grunkle Ford! I guess not a lot of people actually know he exists, since everyone thought Grunkle Stan was him for like... a bajillion years or something." Mabel explained when she saw you looking at him. "I'd, uh, like to hear that whole story at some point." You laughed, definitely not understanding what Mabel was talking about. "He doesn't really like to talk much, so you're probably not going to get a lot out of him." Dipper said, sounding like he had experience with that situation.

"Well, if he knows anything about my research, I might just have to force him to talk to me." You laughed again, though without humor. You didn't want to stay in Gravity Falls forever and you'd already been here for three years. By this point, you'd wanted to be in another country, travelling anywhere and everywhere. But you still hadn't solved the mysteries here, so you couldn't leave. "What's your research?" Dipper asked, pulling out a journal and pen and looking like he was ready to take notes. "Oh, well I study mysteries and anomalies across the world. It's always-" You were cut off by a squeal from Mabel.

"You HAVE to meet Grunkle Ford!!" The twins shared a look, like they were formulating a plan. "Yeah, that's kind of his thing. He's been studying Gravity Falls for years. He's an anomaly himself, actually. He's a polydactyly." Dipper said, scribbling something in his journal. You were immediately even more interested in this mysterious Pines. "Seriously? I'm glad you guys decided to come back this summer, this is all really going to help with my research."

The three of you sat down in the grass outside the Shack as they began to recount Weirdmageddon. It was fascinating; two children, barely even teenagers, had saved the entire town and the universe from a dream demon. You'd heard of dream demons, of course. But you had no idea how much power they held outside of their own realm, if they could get through. You took as many notes as you could, but it seemed like the two of them hadn't had anyone to talk to about it either, because they were talking at the speed of light. 

The sun started to set faster than you had expected and it was getting dark. You saw as the great-uncle, or... Grunkle, as the kids said, you knew poked his head out of the Shack and called them back inside. You walked with them back to the door and as they stepped inside, Stan stopped you before you could leave.

"Hey, uh... The kids seemed to like spending time with you. If you wanna come over more often, that'd be fine." You decided that was his way of asking you to come over again. You laughed under your breath and nodded. "I'll be back tomorrow." Stan gave you a curt nod in return, and as he stepped back inside the Shack himself, you saw his twin passing by the door. "Um, Mr. Pines, could I ask you something?" He turned back around and, seeing the look on your face, closed the door behind him. "Stan is fine, kid. What is it?"

You didn't quite know how to ask, but you had to learn something more about his brother. "Your twin, Ford. Do you think he'd be willing to talk to me?" The look on Stan's face told you everything you needed to know. "Poindexter's not really one to make friends. Unless you've got something to offer him, it's unlikely that he'll spend any time with you." You rubbed the back of your head, almost embarrassed for asking. "Well, thanks anyways. I'll see you tomorrow Mr. Pi- err, Stan." You corrected yourself, and he grinned at you. "See ya then."

As you began your walk back into town, you thought about everything Mabel and Dipper had told you. You didn't really know what to make of the family yet, but you were determined to make an impression.


	2. Chapter 2

You returned to the Mystery Shack the next day, as you’d promised. There was a tour going on, and the new Mr. Mystery was leading it. Although you’d always known him as Soos, he insisted on being called by his new name while on the job. 

Stan was at the back of the Shack, working on his beloved car. You walked over to him, coughing to announce your presence. He looked up from under the hood and grinned. “Hey, you came back! Glad the kids didn’t scare you off or nothin’.” You laughed, shaking your head. “Nope, not much can scare me away, especially if it’ll help me finish my work here.”

He stopped working on the car to give you his full attention. “Finish? Y’mean you don’t plan on staying here?” You shook your head again. “I’ve actually already been in Gravity Falls longer than I was hoping. When I graduated, I wanted to travel the world studying and solving mysteries, but I haven’t solved anything here. So, I’m staying until I do.” Stan furrowed his brows. 

“Ya know, after you left yesterday, the kids couldn’t stop talking about you. They’ve got friends in town, sure, but none of ‘em really understand the weird stuff they went through last summer. I’m not tellin’ ya that you have to stay, since the kids don’t even live here. Just, uh, don’t forget Gravity Falls once you do decide to leave.”

The children in question soon came tumbling out of the Shack after being informed that you had arrived. As you looked between them and Stan, you couldn’t help but think that Gravity Falls wasn’t really all that bad. 

\--

Today, Dipper decided that you should see the dream demon that had caused so much havoc. He didn’t mention, however, that it was just a statue, so you were a bit freaked out until the twins showed you the aforementioned demon. 

You grumbled that they had scared you for no reason as they laughed. You couldn’t stay upset for long. The twins had good intentions, after all. Dipper explained what happened with the demon, who you learned was named Bill Cipher. 

“We’re pretty much the saviors of the town. No wait, the universe!” Mabel said as Dipper told you what they’d done. He also told you what their grunkles had done as well, almost seeming to tear up when he said that they’d been able to destroy the demon only by erasing Stan’s memory. Mabel patted her brother’s back. “It’s all good though, because my amazing scrapbooking skills made him remember everything.” 

You walked just a bit behind them as you made the trek back to the Shack, the twins laughing about all the things that had happened last summer. You hoped this summer would be just as memorable for them, but maybe with a little less apocalypse.

\--

You spent the rest of the week almost entirely at the Mystery Shack. You’d even spent the night once when Mabel insisted you stay because it was “way too dark and scary to drive back to your house”. You’d given in, partly because it was pretty dark out, but also because it was too hard to say no to Mabel.

The night you’d stayed at the Shack was the most interesting night you’d had in a long while. You slept on the ground in the twins’ room, at the end of Mabel’s bed. You woke up part way through the night with a dry mouth. You’d seen the kitchen on your way into the home part of the Shack so you knew where you could find water. Both of the twins were fast asleep, so you got up as quietly as possible and made your way downstairs.

It was really dark in the house, but you found your way to the kitchen eventually. You looked through the cupboards, found a glass, and started filling it with water at the sink before you heard the floorboards creak behind you.

You looked behind you to see the silhouette of someone in the doorway. You could’ve sworn it was Stan, but as the figure entered the room, the moonlight better illuminated their face. 

Ford.

“You must be the kids’ new friend.” He said it like you were some kid they’d met on the playground. “Um, yeah. That’s me, I suppose.” He nodded, looking you up and down. You were a bit embarrassed, as you were just wearing a large t-shirt that Dipper had, with a hand-drawn picture and the words “Pterodactyl Bros” scribbled across it. “You’re older than I thought.”

How old did he think you would be? You assumed he thought you were going to be Dipper and Mabel’s age, and he probably wasn’t expecting a college graduate. 

“Oh. Um, sorry.” Why were you apologizing for being your age?? What was wrong with you? Ford just stared at you for a second before speaking again. “Why are you spending so much time with them?” You were guessing he meant the kids. 

Swallowing roughly to gather some confidence, you explained. “Well, I’m here in Gravity Falls to research the anomalies and mysteries of the world, but I haven’t had much luck on my own. So they’re helping me out.” You didn’t want to mention that they wanted you to talk to him. You thought it might make this situation even more uncomfortable.

But as soon as you said anomalies, Ford’s eyes lit up. “Anomalies, huh?” He lifted a hand and wiggled his fingers in the light. Six fingers, just like the twins had said. “I suppose you already know, but I’m Ford, the other great-uncle. I came to Gravity Falls a long time ago to study the weirdness of the town. I think you and I should spend some more time together. Meet me in the gift shop tomorrow morning.” And with that, he turned on his heel and left the room.

You stood in the kitchen, trying to wrap your head around what had just happened. You’d finally met Ford and he was not only willing to help you, but he seemed enthusiastic about it. 

Not only that, but you’d gotten your first good look at him, despite it being dark in the kitchen. He definitely looked like Stan, but there was something about him that made you want to go find where he’d gone and talk to him even more. You didn’t ever want to take your eyes off of him. 

You completely forgot about your glass of water and went back upstairs to the room. Laying back down on the makeshift bed Mabel had put together for you, you stared at the ceiling and didn’t get any sleep for the rest of the night.

\--

The snort of a very chubby pig woke you up. You were acquainted with Waddles, but you weren’t sure a pig snout in your ear was the best alarm. Nevertheless, you sat up and gave the pig a good pat on his head. 

“You’re a good man, Waddles.” You said, and he snorted again, this time waking the twins as well. Mabel immediately hopped out of her bed. “We’ve got so much to do today! Let’s go now! We can go by Greasy’s and get breakfast and then head into town and find-” Your overwhelmed expression made her pause. “Too much?”

You pointed at the clock, with a bright “7:45” on it. “Too early.”

Before anyone else could say anything, you heard your name being yelled from downstairs. The three of you recognized the voice as Ford’s. You’d almost forgotten that you were supposed to meet with him today. 

“Was that Grunkle Ford?” Mabel asked, wandering over to where you were sitting and picking up her pig. “Sounded like it.” You said, although you were certain it had been him. “Why is he calling for you? Usually he only yells for someone when he’s on fire.” Dipper spoke up, now also interested in the conversation.

The fact that he knew that Ford only yelled when he was on fire told you that he probably set himself on fire more often than the average person.

You weren’t sure if you should tell them about the previous night. It might not be your place to tell them about their grunkle’s business. You decided against it.

“I know as much as you do.” You said, stretching as you stood up. “Might as well go find out what he wants, right?” The twins shared a look. “Well, I have plans with Candy and Grenda and I should get there as soon as possible!” Mable practically yelled, before dashing out of the room. Dipper looked around the room a bit awkwardly. “And uh, I’m going monster hunting with Soos. So…” He backed out through the door, avoiding eye contact with you.

That was strange.

You waved it off as the twins just being weird and decided not to worry too much about it. Besides, you had a grunkle to meet with.


	3. Chapter 3

You got dressed before going downstairs, deciding that an oversized t-shirt probably wasn’t the most appropriate outfit for your first time officially meeting Ford.

It was still pretty cold outside, given that it wasn’t even 9 AM yet. You tugged on a pair of jeans and the sweatshirt you’d brought just in case it got cold while you were there. You didn’t look like the researcher that you were, but you were comfortable and that’s all you really cared about it.

Making your way to the gift shop, you passed by Stan, who was not yet dressed and almost jumped out of his skin when he saw you. “Christ, kid, give some warning next time. I forgot you were here.” You just snickered and went on your way, before Stan put a hand on your shoulder. 

“Are you meeting with Ford?” He was suddenly serious, something you weren’t particularly used to. “Um, yeah. I ran into him last night and we got to talking about my research. He thought it would be useful for us to work together.” You figured Ford was Stan’s brother, so there was no harm in telling him what happened. Stan gave you a look, almost that of worry. “Be careful, alright? My brother might be smart, but he’s not very… What’s the word? Hm. Oh, empathetic. He doesn’t think too hard about how his actions can affect other people.” You had noticed Ford’s cold demeanor. You patted Stan on his hand still resting on your shoulder. “I’ll be careful. Just for you.” You tried to lighten the situation with a wink, but Stan still looked worried. 

Ford called for you again, and you gave Stan the best look of reassurance you could before continuing to the gift shop. 

Either the Shack wasn’t open yet or it was closed for the day, because you’d never seen the gift shop so empty. It was just Ford, standing by the vending machine fiddling with something that looked like a gun. You stood in the doorway, not wanting to scare him like you did Stan.

Finally, he looked over and saw you. “You could’ve said something. I don’t scare as easily as Stanley.” He said, holstering whatever he’d been holding. “Oh, sorry. I just didn’t want you to drop… whatever that was.” You said, motioning to his holster. 

He shrugged. “My equipment doesn’t break easily. I’ve dropped things enough that I thought it would be important to make my work… mostly unbreakable.” You laughed at the ‘mostly’. Ford almost smiled when you laughed.

Almost.

“So what’re we doing today?” You asked, watching as Ford punched something into the vending machine. Seemed a little early to be getting a snack, but you didn’t question it.

At least, until the vending machine swung open to reveal a staircase. 

You definitely had not expected that. You must’ve looked absolutely shocked, because Ford was looking at you with an incredibly smug grin. He changed back to his serious expression before you could see him.

“That staircase leads to my lab. We’ll be spending some time down there before heading out into the woods.” And with that, he headed down into the space where the vending machine once was. You figured he wanted you to follow him.

Down into the basement you went. You had no idea what to expect, but you were not expecting what you saw. It was a fairly small room, but behind a glass window and a heavy door sat a larger room with what looked like a dismantled portal. With any other family, that would’ve been far-fetched, but with this one, it was certainly possible.

Ford sat at the console in front of the window and pulled three leather bound journals out from a drawer and placed them on the console. He pulled a chair over next to him from the other desk in the room. You decided this seat was probably for you.

You sat and looked between him and the journals, trying to decipher the situation. Were they books about anomalies he wanted you to read? Was it the history of Gravity Falls? You waited for an answer, until he handed the first one to you.

“When I first came to Gravity Falls, there were far too many anomalies to write about in just notes. I made these journals to keep track of my work. I’d like for you to read them.” So you’d been partially correct. You felt the journal in your hands. The leather was worn, like it’d been read many times before. “Thank you. This is amazing…” You muttered, flipping through some of the pages, being especially careful with them. 

Nearly every page was filled with beautiful illustrations of creatures you’d seen around the town and hand-written descriptions of each of them. You hadn’t taken Ford for the artistic type, but if this really was his work, he could’ve been an artist in another life. 

He watched as you looked through that first journal. You were entirely absorbed in his work, more than any other person he’d ever met, even Dipper. It seemed that you found this topic, his life’s work, just as intriguing as he did.

And as he watched you, he felt like his heart was rising into his throat. He knew he wasn’t in poor enough health to be having heart problems. But regardless, the feeling persisted.

While you were reading, some of your hair fell out from where it was behind your ear and his first instinct was to tuck it back. You felt his fingers brush against the side of your face and looked up to meet his eyes. You glanced to the side to confirm where his hand was and felt your face erupt into a blush.

Both of you pulled back in shock, looking away from each other. “I am so sorry, that was incredibly inappropriate of me and-” “No it’s fine, I’m sorry I wasn’t paying attention, this is entirely my-” “No no, it’s my fault, I shouldn’t have…” Ford trailed off, watching as you tucked both sides of your hair behind your ears. 

“I should… Um…” It was like his voice was caught in his throat. He couldn’t manage to get out an explanation for his actions. He felt like an idiot. “It’s really fine, Ford.” You said, finally looking up at him again. 

And that stupid feeling in his heart came back as soon as you did.

“I’ll keep reading your journals. Unless there was something else you wanted to do today?” You were obviously trying to change the subject, which he appreciated. He was glad you seemed to have forgotten that he planned to take you to the woods outside the Shack. “No. Go ahead and, uh… Keep reading. I’ll leave you to it.” He stood and headed back up the stairs, leaving you alone in his lab.

\--

Ford did his best to avoid you for the rest of the day. He told himself he was doing it to give you time to think about if you still wanted to work with him, but it was really because he knew seeing you would make him act irrationally like he’d done earlier. 

He had no idea why he had done what he did. It wasn’t like him to do something spontaneous like that. But there was something about you that made him feel… weird. Not the same weird as he’d documented in his research, you were an anomaly of your own.

Pacing his room, he tried to figure out what exactly about you made him feel like that. Of course, there was the obvious. You were young and attractive. It had been an incredibly long time since Ford had been a young adult and he’d forgotten how it felt to be that young, until he met you. Just the few moments you’d spent together had been reinvigorating. He felt like he had a purpose in Gravity Falls again.

That night was torture for him. He was tired, but he couldn’t sleep no matter how hard he tried. He decided to wander around the Shack for a bit, hoping to tire himself out. 

He didn’t expect to see you again.

He hadn’t gone into the kitchen yet, but he saw your silhouette illuminated by the moonlight coming through the window. You were sitting on the counter, staring outside and watching the stars. It looked like you had a journal of your own in your hands and you would occasionally look away from the window and write something down.

It was completely innocent.

Except when he noticed what you were wearing. It was the same thing you’d worn the night before, a far too large t-shirt, but tonight he noticed that the shirt was all you were wearing. He did his best to keep his eyes from wandering, but it was far too tempting.

You had one leg on the counter with the other hanging off the side. Your shirt was ruched up above your knees and he could see nearly every inch of your legs. He watched as you tucked a loose strand of hair behind your ear and it looked like you blushed when you did.

Ford leaned forward unconsciously, making the floorboard creak. He moved out from the doorway before you could look over and see him. 

He had narrowly avoided looking like a creepy old man fawning over a young woman he barely knew. But just barely. Why had he stayed so long? He had his back pressed against the wall outside the kitchen as he rubbed his temples. 

As he stood there, trying to compose himself again, he heard humming coming from the kitchen. He took a chance and peeked in one more time. 

The journal you were writing in had been placed aside and you were now just looking at the night sky. He tried to figure out what you were singing.

“Aquila, Cygnus, Cassiopeia… Hercules, Lyra, Cepheus… Ursa Major, Minor, Sagittarius…” You were singing the names of the visible constellations. He swallowed roughly and wiped some sweat from his forehead, which he would attribute to the summer heat.

He’d been standing there for too long. And after this, there was no way he’d be able to fall asleep. So he decided to just go back to his room and come up with a plan to help you finish your research without making you any more uncomfortable than he already had. 

Moving as quietly as possible, he got back to his room. He hoped you hadn’t heard or seen him. He flopped onto his bed, arm resting over his forehead.

Just a bit later, he heard footsteps pass his door and head up the stairs. But they stopped for a second outside his bedroom, like the person was hesitating. But they kept moving. He wanted to believe that maybe they’d been your footsteps. Maybe you’d passed by his slightly open door and thought to come in, but decided against it, wanting to keep the relationship as professional as possible. But you’d probably just wondered why the door was open and then went on your way up the stairs.

He thought about you.

The whole night, he thought about you. Suddenly, this person was in his life who was everything he’d looked for in a partner, research and romantic wise. Smart, determined, kind, witty, and unshakeable. But you were so young. 

He had to remind himself that you weren’t a child, of course, but being at least 25 years his junior made him feel guilty for thinking of you like he was. 

The guilt became even worse as the night went on. 

The image of your silhouette stayed steady in his mind. It was like he could see every curve of your body, and all he wanted to do was…

This was bad. This was really bad. He ran his hands through his hair to try to cool himself off, gain some composure, but it didn’t work. How could he fall apart so quickly? He had only just met you the other night, how did you have so much control over his thoughts?

The kids had told him about you, of course, but you were their age in his mind. Once he met you, all the characteristics the twins had described finally had a face, and it wasn’t the one he’d expected. 

It was far better than any expectations he’d had. 

His room was far too hot. Or maybe it was him. Regardless, he tugged off the thick sweater he was wearing and tossed it to the floor. That didn’t help.

Gradually, Ford pulled off every piece of clothing he’d had on. He was still overheating. Still running his hands through his now very messy hair, he weighed his options. He could be uncomfortable for the rest of the night or he could…

He hated this. He hated what he was about to do, and he hated that he was going to do it while thinking of you.

Looking down at his stomach, he saw his cock, hard against him, and sighed. He was really going to do this.

As soon as he wrapped a hand around his length, he hated this all just a little less. He imagined what your body might look like without a shirt covering it. He thought of your legs wrapped around his waist, your hands running through his hair, your voice moaning his name.

It didn’t take long for him to come to his end, given it had been a long time since he’d done anything like this. He immediately felt better, and at the same time, so much worse. How could he face you again, knowing what he’d done? 

Well, what you didn’t know wouldn’t hurt you.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> this chapter is WAY longer than i originally intended and i didn't even write everything i wanted to, so enjoy! i'll have another chapter out sometime in the next week :)

It was hard to sleep in the Shack. Everyone else seemed to manage fine, but both nights you’d spent there, you’d been completely restless. You wandered the house until you finally decided to give up and just look out at the stars.

Before coming to Gravity Falls, you’d never really been able to see the stars this clearly. There was always awful light pollution that you couldn’t escape no matter how hard you tried. But out here, the only thing in the way was the enormous trees. 

The window in the kitchen was the best place in the house to look outside, so you sat yourself on the counter and started to find the constellations. It was much easier to find them out here and you were grateful. It meant all of your time studying astronomy might not go to waste entirely. 

You had just remembered a song you taught yourself to remember the constellations visible in the summer when you heard a creak from outside the kitchen. You glanced over, hoping to see Ford but not expecting it, and saw nothing. Assuming it was just the old house making noise, you looked back to the sky and started to hum the song.

It was silly, you knew that. But no one was around and it was a nice reminder of all the work you’d done.

Eventually, it started to get cold in the kitchen and you decided you’d rather be restless in a warm room. Making your way back upstairs, you passed by Ford’s room. His door was slightly open and you thought about peeking in to see if he was asleep. You thought better of it and just kept on your way upstairs.

You didn’t know why you had such a hard time sleeping here. But you decided it might be best to sleep at your own house the next night. You couldn’t be a proper researcher if you were sleep deprived, and another night at the Shack might cause that.

\--

As soon as the sun started to beam in through the window of the bedroom, the twins were awake. Mabel practically pounced on you.

“You’re not busy today, right??” She asked, buzzing with excitement. You shook your head. “Other than reading Ford’s journals, I’m not doing anything.” Her hands grabbed for your shoulders and started to shake you. “DO YOU KNOW WHAT TOMORROW IS??” Oh boy. You had a feeling that if you didn’t know, you were about to be told, and even if you did know, you were going to learn something.

You were only given a second to think before Mabel answered her own question for you. “It’s SUMMERWEEN!” You knew about some of the weird Gravity Falls traditions, and Summerween was one of your favorites. You enjoyed Halloween and having it twice just made it even more fun.

“We’ve gotta get decorations and candy and costumes!” Mabel said, finally moving off of you. “Mabel and I are dressing up as Grunkle Stan and Ford.” Dipper joined the conversation, sitting up in his bed. “Yeah, it’s gonna be hilarious! Now we’ve just gotta figure out what to do for you and Grunkle Ford…” Mabel mumbled, rubbing her chin, deep in thought. 

“Me and Ford? Why not Stan?” That earned a sigh from both of the twins. “Grunkle Stan likes to scare children on Summerween and he learned that the best way to do that was to answer the door half naked.” Dipper explained, shuddering as he did. You laughed; that was a very Stan thing to do. “So what are you guys thinking for me and Ford?”

Dipper and Mabel glanced at each other and then back at you. “You’re gonna be Dr. Frankenstein and Grunkle Ford will be your monster!” Mabel squealed, obviously pleased with her idea. It almost sounded like a couple’s costume, but it was hard to argue with Mabel so you decided to just go with it.

You stood from your makeshift bed on the floor and grabbed some clothes. “I’ll go get dressed and then we can go to the store. Gimme just a few minutes.” The twins started to get ready as you left the room and headed towards the bathroom.

It sounded like someone had just stopped the shower, so you sat down across from the door and waited for them to come out. 

The door opened soon after. You glanced up from where you were sitting to find Ford, covered only by a towel around his waist. You could feel your face turning bright red as you looked back down. “S-sorry! I didn’t realize y-you… were in there.” You stumbled over your apology, hoping he would just go. 

Instead, he tightened the towel and knelt down next to you, making sure he was still covered. “We should talk later.” He said, running a hand through his still wet hair to keep it out of his face. Your eyes nearly went wide. “Oh, um… Sure. What about…?” You mumbled, still looking at the ground. “Something important. Once the kids go out to trick-or-treat, come down to my lab, please.” He said, still not exactly answering your question. He didn’t even give you a chance to respond before he stood back up and headed towards his room.

You quickly made your way into the bathroom and shut the door behind you.

It’d be a lie to say you hadn’t snuck a peek at him. He was always wearing a sweater and a long coat, no matter how hot it was. You had no idea what he looked like under all that until today. There was dark gray hair across his chest and down his stomach, leading under the towel. Apparently he had some sort of workout regimen, because he was far more in shape than you were expecting someone of his age to be. As you stood in the bathroom, you had only one overwhelming thought.

He’s hot.

He’s so incredibly hot and you could not get the image of him standing in his towel out of your mind. And along with the fact that he’s hot, he’s also smart and has the same interests as you. 

What could he possibly want to talk to you about, though?

Once you finally got over what felt like a mild panic attack after seeing him half naked, you tried to figure out why he wanted to talk more. It seemed like he didn’t want to even mention what had happened the other day, so it couldn’t have been that. Maybe he didn’t want to work with you anymore after what happened in his lab. You hoped it wasn’t that.

You were jolted from your thoughts by a loud knock on the door. “Hurry up! We gotta get to the store before all the good stuff is gone!” That was definitely Mabel. You got your clothes on as fast as you could and opened the door. “Great, let’s go!” She grabbed your hand and proceeded to pull you outside, where Dipper was waiting with-

Ford.

Was he coming with? You thought it would just be you and the twins, but they apparently had other plans. “I already grabbed your keys, so c’mon, let’s go!” Mabel said, tossing your car keys to you as she sped to the car. You looked at Ford and you could’ve sworn his face turned pink when he saw you.

Unlocking the car, you sat in the driver’s seat and expected one of the twins to call shotgun. Instead, they both clambered into the backseat, forcing Ford to sit up front with you. He hesitated for a second before getting in. You kept your eyes forward, doing your best to keep the image of him in a towel out of your head. 

The drive was short, thankfully, and you found a parking spot after a bit of searching. There were more people here than you expected, considering the event in question was just a day away. The twins immediately bolted inside, leaving you alone with Ford.

“We should probably go after them to make sure they don’t break anything. Or anyone.” You said as you got out of the car. And then Ford laughed. You were almost sure you’d never heard him laugh before. 

It was lovely.

“That’s true. Let’s head in.” He said, walking into the store. You followed behind, not wanting to get too close. You didn’t want to make him uncomfortable.

Once you got into the store, you saw Ford looking back at you. “We won’t find them very well if you’re trailing 10 feet behind me, you know.” You weren’t that far behind him, but you figured he was exaggerating to make a point. You sheepishly moved up next to him. 

“We are currently on a mission to find two of the most prominent anomalies in Gravity Falls: my great niece and nephew.” He said to you, as if he was recording a summary of your adventure. “Knowing them, Mabel is most likely by the candy and Dipper is by the decorations.” He glanced over at you. “What do you think is the best plan of action?”

You decided to play along. “If we split up, we’ll cover more ground.” He nodded along to your plan. “However, it may be too dangerous to do that. Strength in numbers, you know.” Again he nodded, more enthusiastically than before. “So we stick together, in case we run into a threat.” It seemed you had decided on a plan. 

The two of you headed to decorations first, in the hopes that Dipper might know where his sister went. Unfortunately, he was nowhere to be found. “Where else do you think he might be?” You asked, noticing that Ford looked a bit disappointed his theory hadn’t panned out. “I know they were planning some costumes for us, so he might be in that section?”

Ford stopped in his tracks. “They’re making costumes for us? As in, a costume for us to wear together?” You thought the twins would’ve told him. “Well, it’s not like a two person horse costume, but they want us to be Dr. Frankenstein and the monster.” He was quiet for a second, as if he was trying to figure out which one of you would be which character. “He could be in the costume section. Let’s look there.”

It was getting more and more crowded as you continued to look for the kids and you’d gotten close to losing sight of Ford a few times. You caught up with him at the end of an aisle and he smiled at you. “Maybe we should figure out a better system of staying together.” You nodded, trying to catch your breath from pushing through a crowd of people. He stuck an arm out and you weren’t quite sure what he expected you to do.

When he realized you didn’t understand, he took your arm and linked it with his. You immediately felt like an idiot, but you also felt your face starting to warm up. You looked away from him and pretended to be searching the store so he wouldn’t see. 

You walked arm in arm around the store until you finally got to the costume section and found Dipper looking at special effects makeup. “Dipper Pines!” The teen whipped his head in the direction of his grunkle’s voice. “Oh hey Grunkle Ford, we were looking for you.” Mabel popped out from the end of the aisle and waved. “We found your costumes!” She held up a pair of costumes, grin wide across her face. You and Ford glanced at each other, decided it wasn’t worth it to try and get out of wearing them, and smiled back at her.

“They look great, Mabel!” You said, starting to walk towards her before you realized your arm was still hooked in Ford’s and you were pulled back. The twins then noticed your arms and Mabel gasped. She tugged Dipper to the end of the aisle with her and pulled him into a pseudo-huddle. 

There was incomprehensible whispering between the two of them while you and Ford unhooked your arms. You both knew they were up to something, but at the moment, you just wanted to get out of the store and back to your own home. 

They finally returned and told you they were ready to leave. You all made your way to the front and the twins paid for what they were getting. You were not surprised to see a picture of Stan with the words “DO NOT ALLOW ENTRY” at the checkout. Dipper explained that their first Summerween in Gravity Falls had been eventful and that he would tell you more later.

You left the store and all got into your car, but this time Ford got into the passenger seat right away instead of hesitating. The kids hopped in the back seat and started whispering to each other again as you drove them all back to the Shack.

As they all got out of the car, Ford stopped when you didn’t get out as well. “Oh, are you not coming in?” You shook your head. “No, I figured it might be nice to actually sleep at my own house for once, you know?” You laughed, but he looked a little sad. “I’ll be back tomorrow though. Can’t miss Summerween with the Pines.” You smiled at him, hoping he’d stop looking so disappointed. It seemed to work as he smiled back. “Alright. As long as you’re back tomorrow. We still need to talk.”

Right, you almost forgot he’d mentioned that. You shouldn’t have forgotten, considering he’d been half naked when he did. But apparently all you remembered was the part where he was only wearing a towel. 

“Of course. I’ll see you then.” And with that, you were home free.

You finally got some sleep that night. Your own bed was far more comfortable than a pile of blankets and pillows on the floor, and you assumed that was why you slept better at home.

But there was something in the back of your mind saying there was another reason you couldn’t sleep at the Shack. The next morning, you tried to figure out what it was, what anomaly could be causing you to have sleep problems specifically there. But you’d never come across something related to sleep in Gravity Falls.

You’d only ever heard of a dream demon.

\--

You made your way to the Shack at noon. That seemed like a good time to start getting ready. The twins had your costume, so you decided to just wear something comfortable and easy to change in and out of.

Tugging on a pair of shorts and a tank, you got out the door just to run into Ford.

To say you were surprised would be an understatement. You’d just barely gotten your shoes on before you realized you were running later than you wanted to be and ran out the door, only to t run headfirst into Ford.

You felt yourself falling backwards as you tried to readjust before a strong hand placed itself on your back, steadying you and keeping you upright. 

“Um… Hi.” You finally said, looking at him as you regained your balance. “Hello.” He said with something that almost looked like a blush on his face. “I was just about to head to the Shack.” You explained, holding up your keys. He glanced behind him and you followed his gaze to see the Stanmobile sitting beside your car. 

Oddly enough, Stan wasn’t in it.

“The kids were wondering where you were and Stanley was busy, so he gave me his keys and said I should check up on you.” He was fiddling with said keys as he explained why he randomly showed up at your door. “So, am I coming with you?” Ford nodded, like it was obvious.

So, you followed him to the car and got in the passenger side. Ford sat in the driver’s seat and started the car. He was focused on the road, so you just watched the trees pass by the window. 

“What kind of music do you like?”

It was so sudden that it nearly made you jump out of your seat. “Oh, um, older stuff mostly. Classic rock.” You answered, unsure as to what prompted the question in the first place. Ford was quiet for a second as he fiddled with the radio. 

And then the car was filled with the sounds of the radio station you frequently listened to. “Stanley likes this kind of music too.” He said, humming along to the song. 

He was still focused on the road, so you took the chance to look over at him. He had both hands on the wheel, in the perfect 10 and 2 position. He was sitting up completely straight with his eyes glued to the road. A picture perfect driver.

You couldn’t help but wonder if Stan had really told him to check on you or if he chose to do it himself.

The car soon stopped at the Shack, but before you could get out, Ford grabbed your wrist. You sat back down and closed the door. “What’s up?”

He swallowed and rubbed the back of his neck. “I just… wanted to make sure you remembered that we’re going to talk when the kids go trick or treating.” You patted his hand reassuringly. “I remember. And I won’t forget.” 

You got out of the car and headed into the Shack to find it completely decked out for Summerween. As soon as you stepped through the door, the kids came tumbling down the stairs to greet you.

“You’re FINALLY here!” Mabel said, sounding exasperated. “We have to get you into costume, c’mon!!” She grabbed your hand and pulled you upstairs. The door opened again as you went up the stairs and you saw Ford. He greeted Dipper and then looked up to see you. 

And he smiled.

You didn’t know what to expect from today, but you were sure it’d be good.

\--

The time for trick or treating came soon after Mabel put the finishing touches on your costume. You certainly looked like a scientist, but not particularly mad. Mabel explained to you that having a woman portrayed as a mad scientist was going against the agenda she wanted to pursue, so you were just a very pretty scientist instead. 

The costume was far more revealing than you thought it would be. There was a slit up the leg of the lab coat and the shirt you were wearing underneath was a little more low-cut than you’d expected. Mabel reassured you that it looked totally normal and absolutely amazing, and that you and Ford would make a great couple, which she quickly corrected to “pair”. 

You decided to just go with it. That was far easier than trying to convince Mabel to let you just wear your regular clothes. 

The two of you went downstairs to greet your respective costume’s other halves. Dipper definitely made a great Ford. He’d even put in some dark gray hair dye to really get the look down. While Mabel ran off to find Stan’s old fez, you waited in the living room with Dipper for the real Ford to come out.

“Can I ask you something?” You glanced over at him and nodded. “Sure. What’s up?” He sat down on the recliner and thought for a moment. “I’m sure you’ve noticed, but Mabel has been trying to get you and Grunkle Ford alone whenever she can. She’s been trying to convince me to get in on her plan and I definitely understand where she’s coming from. You and Grunkle Ford have a lot in common and he’s been alone for a long time. I mean, me and Mabel and Grunkle Stan do our best to keep him company, but it’s not the same as someone like you.” You weren’t exactly sure where Dipper was going with this. “Well, anyways, Grunkle Stan told me that you were planning on leaving Gravity Falls for good once your research was done. And I totally get that, you’ve got a mission here and all. But, uh…” 

You heard footsteps coming from the direction of Ford’s room. “What is it, Dipper?” You sat down on the dinosaur skull next to him. “Do you think, maybe, you’d stay in Gravity Falls if Ford was here?” You didn’t even have a chance to answer before the man in question came into the room. Both of you looked up at him. 

If he was supposed to be Frankenstein’s monster, you’d definitely read the book wrong. His hair was neatly slicked back and he was wearing a suit that seemed like it had been hastily covered in some dirt to make it look more worn. The bolts on the side of his head looked perfectly placed, as if they were done by a professional. He was far more handsome than you’d imagined the monster to be.

He had his hands in the pockets of his slacks and he was looking at you. He was glad his face was painted slightly green so you couldn’t see it turning pink. Why did the kids have to give you a costume with a slit up your leg?

“Dipper, isn’t it time for you two to get out there and start trick or treating?” He asked, as if he was eager to get them out. Dipper quickly checked the watch on his wrist, another spot-on addition to his costume. “Oh man, you’re right! Mabel, it’s time!” He yelled as he jumped up from the seat to find his sister. 

With the twins gone, Ford looked over at you again. “So… Shall we?” He said, waving a hand in the direction of his lab. You did your best to keep yourself from looking nervous, but it was difficult. 

“Yeah, let’s go.”

The walk down to the lab was longer than you’d remembered. Or maybe it was just your nerves. Either way, it took every bit of your strength not to fall down the stairs. You soon reached the main room and watched as Ford pushed a chair to you and sat down in his own. 

You sat right after, crossing your legs to get more comfortable. 

Expecting Ford to speak up, you stayed quiet. It was a bit awkward, just sitting in silence with him, the only sounds being the whirring of machinery. 

“Have you noticed what the kids have been up to?” What was with this family suddenly speaking in silence and scaring the hell out of you?

You nodded. “Yeah, kinda seems like they’re trying to get us alone at every opportunity.” Ford made a noise of agreement. “Yes I have noticed that too. Do you have any idea why?” Dipper had said something earlier that gave you some idea, but you weren’t sure it was entirely appropriate for you to tell Ford about it, especially since Dipper hadn’t outright said what you were thinking. 

“No, I’m not sure.” That was partly true. Dipper hadn’t told you what Mabel’s goal was. Ford scratched at his chin. “Well, it seems to me that they’re trying to get us together.” You did your best to feign surprise. “Seriously? Why do you say that?” It seemed as though you’d missed your calling as an actor, because Ford completely believed you. “They’ve given up on Stanley, they tried to find him someone last summer and it did not go well. But they’ve never tried with me, so I suppose it would make sense for them to do the same to me.” His theory was definitely sound. 

Shifting your legs to a better position, you thought some more. “Would that… be a bad thing?” You asked, with just a little burst of confidence. Ford looked up at you, looking a little confused. “I don’t really know. The last partner I had was in college and that was more than 30 years ago.” You’d almost forgotten the age difference. Maybe it was best if you didn’t pursue this, as much as you wanted to.

But for some reason, you really wanted to know if Ford was interested in you. You would attribute it to the outfit giving you more confidence than usual. Leaning forward, you rested your elbows on your knees and your face in your hands. “I mean, they are your niece and nephew. I feel like they know you pretty well at this point. They might be on the right track.” You could see Ford gripping the armrests of his chair. 

“They’re… just children, they don’t know what they’re doing. Mabel has tried to play match-maker before, it never ends particularly well. Just look at Waddles and Gompers.” Ah yes, the goat and the pig. You’d seen Mabel forcing them together. “Sure, but that’s different from two people. Hasn’t she had success with actual people? Those two teenagers?” Ford thought for a moment. “Yes, I suppose that’s true. But they’re also teenagers, desperate for affection and all.”

You tapped your fingers against your face. “We’re not teenagers, Ford.” He ran a hand through his hair, fixing a few loose strands. “Why are you doing this?” You sat back up, a bit surprised at his question. “Why am I trying to figure out why you’re so against the twins finding you someone to be with?” You asked, attempting to play innocent. Ford crossed his arms. “Is that what you’re doing? It doesn’t seem like it.” It might be time to come clean.

“Honestly Ford, you seem like someone who would do good from having another person to spend time with. You hole yourself up in your lab most of the time from what I can tell, and that’s not good for anyone.” His brow furrowed. “For your information, between last summer and now, I went on a boat trip with Stanley across the world trying to find anomalies caused by Weirdmageddon.” You huffed, unimpressed. “So you were secluded on a boat with one other person for 9 months. That’s not much different from what you do now.” Ford didn’t seem angry, but he did look frustrated. “I’m perfectly fine being on my own. Besides, there isn’t anyone who’d even be willing to spend the time to understand me and my research.” You could’ve exploded right then. Was it not obvious to him that you wanted to take the time to do just that? You rubbed your temples. “Ford, are you an idiot?” 

He looked incredibly insulted. “What? No, of course not! I’ve been called many things, but never an idiot.” He leaned back in his chair, still looking at you. “Why?” You sighed, not understanding how he didn’t get it. “There are people willing to do that. For you.” 

The two of you were quiet. He seemed to be thinking and you were just waiting. For what, you didn’t know. But you waited nonetheless. And then, finally, a look of understanding came across Ford’s face. 

“Oh my god. I am an idiot.”

You were about to laugh, but were cut off by a pair of lips against yours. Ford’s hands were firmly planted on the armrests of your chair, effectively caging you underneath him. You could feel his face, warm against yours. You weren’t sure what to do with your hands, so you just slid them up his sides and rested them on his ribs. You felt him shudder when you did, like a shiver had run down his spine.

He finally pulled away, taking a breath. “I’m such an idiot.” He muttered, forehead pressed against yours. “Yeah, well I am too. I didn’t think you liked me at all.” He laughed, and you could feel it through his chest. “I like you much more than I’ve let on, apparently.” You were about to tug him back in for another kiss, but before you could, you heard the front door open.

“We’re back!” The twins yelled in unison. Had you two really been down there that long? You glanced at Ford’s watch and realized it had been over an hour. “Can we… finish this later?” He asked, barely grazing your lips with his as he spoke.

“Absolutely.”


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> i never meant for this to be an actual story but i started to get really into it and now there's an actual plot lmao, but i promise there will be smut soon! i really liked where this started to go, so i hope you all enjoy the story!

You jolted awake, forehead covered in sweat and chills running up and down your body. You looked around, trying to decide where you were. Nothing looked familiar at first, but once your eyes adjusted, you recognized it as some type of bedroom. You were on a bed and as you were able to see more of the room, you saw what looked like another person in the room as well.

They were laying on a long couch beside the window, back towards you. The interior of the room looked almost familiar but you couldn’t place it. 

What had happened last night?

It was Summerween, you knew that. And as you looked under the blankets, you realized you were still in your costume. You didn’t remember going home, but if you hadn’t gone back to your house, you must’ve still been at the Shack.

As you were trying to figure out your situation, you heard the other person shift. They rolled over and you could see a mess of dark gray hair and stubble. You were in Ford’s room. And he was there with you.

When you tried to sit up, you were hit with a massive pain in your head and you had to lay back down again as you grabbed at your forehead and closed your eyes, trying to soothe the pain. It felt like a hangover, but you hadn’t got drunk enough to be hungover since college. You groaned as the pain began to subside.

Apparently it was either loud enough to wake Ford up or he hadn’t been asleep because once you opened your eyes again, he was sitting on the side of the bed. “How are you feeling?” He asked, his voice full of worry and betraying the stoic look on his face. 

“My head hurts.” You answered bluntly, to which he almost laughed. “Is that all? No body aches or fever or hallucinations?” Those seemed like very specific symptoms to be asking about. “I woke up in a cold sweat but I’m fine now.” Ford sighed, seeming relieved. “Do you remember anything about last night?” 

You did your best to try and think about what had happened, but you couldn’t remember much. “Not really. I remember Mabel and Dipper making us wear these costumes,” you started, noticing Ford was also still in his costume. “And I kind of remember talking to you in the lab, but I don’t recall what we were talking about. After that, it’s pretty fuzzy.” Your eyes met his and all you could see was sadness. Something had happened last night and he was disappointed you didn’t remember it. Or he was scared.

“Ford, what happened?” He had his hands folded together on his lap as he tried to figure out how to tell you. “Last night, you and I spoke in the lab.” He paused, trying to decide whether or not to remind you of him kissing you. He chose not to. “The kids came home soon after we were done and told us about their night. We all stayed up fairly late talking and you were fading fast. You’d said something about not being able to sleep at the Shack, which was strange, but I thought it would be better to ask you about it later. While the kids and Stan started to clean up all of the decorations, you started to fall asleep. I moved you to Stan’s chair so you’d be more comfortable, but almost as soon as you fell into a deeper sleep, you started screaming.” Your face went cold and you felt your breath catch in your throat. You definitely didn’t remember that. 

“None of us knew what was happening and we didn’t know what to do. I’d never dealt with anything like it. The kids tried talking to you to get you to calm down. Stan put a warm rag on your face because your skin was ice-cold. Nothing was working, until I took your hands. As soon as I said your name, you stopped.” You were so confused. You didn’t remember any of what Ford was describing and you’d never experienced anything like it before. As you began to open your mouth to speak, Ford shook his head. “That’s… not all. You stopped screaming, but then you opened your eyes.” He took a deep breath. “Do you remember anything about what caused Weirdmageddon?”

You thought back to that summer. Of course you recalled the chaos and how many people had gone missing. And you vaguely remembered the monsters roaming around town. But then, the image of that statue Dipper and Mable showed you flashed in your mind. “That… dream demon, right?” Ford nodded. “Yes. When he possesses someone, they act strangely and their eyes begin to look like his. That’s what your eyes looked like last night.” 

You didn’t know what to say. You’d never seen the demon, let alone met him. There was no way for him to have possessed you, especially since Dipper and Mabel said they had destroyed him. “What are you saying, Ford?” You needed clarification. You needed to know if there was something you had to do.

“It seems there’s something about the Shack that allowed him to enter into your mind when you fell asleep here. I think you haven’t been able to sleep here because it was your body’s defense mechanism against him. But that defense can only last so long.” You didn’t want to tell Ford how scared you were. Of all people, you didn’t want him to think you were weak. “Why me?” You asked, voice quieter than you intended. “Probably because you weren’t in the Shack when we protected it from him. I think the rest of us are immune to his power, but whatever remnants of him that exist in the Shack somehow found a way into your mind.” 

He could tell you were scared. “Please don’t worry. I’ll do everything in my power to keep you safe.” He took your hands in his, gently rubbing his thumbs over your skin to calm you down. He was being far more caring and empathetic than you’d ever witnessed and you would’ve thought it strange had it not been working so well. You felt the warmth returning to your face as you watched his hands holding yours. “Is there anything else you remember from last night…?” He asked softly, squeezing your hands. 

You tried to remember anything else. Ford met you at your house and drove you to the Shack, Mabel got you into your costume, you had a weird conversation with Dipper which you still hadn’t told Ford about, and then…

The conversation in the lab. There was more that happened, and you knew it. You were just struggling to remember what it was. You’d talked about how it seemed like the kids were trying to make you and Ford spend more time together. You remembered asking Ford if he was an idiot. 

“Did we…” You started, unsure of exactly what happened. Ford’s eyes went wide. “N-no, nothing like that! We only kissed!” You sat up, and you were glad that your head didn’t hurt this time. “We kissed?!”

“Be careful, you’re still not completely rested!” He said, startled by you sitting up so suddenly. “Ford, are you serious?” He knew you weren’t talking about him being worried about your current state. “Yes, well, we got to talking about what the kids were doing and you called me an idiot and then I kissed you.” You burst out laughing. “As one does, of course.” You said through your laughter. Ford apparently did not find it as funny as you did. “What I did was highly inappropriate, we’re supposed to be research partners.” He huffed, pulling his hands back and crossing his arms.

“I may not remember much from last night, but I’m pretty sure I do remember kissing you back. It wasn’t unreciprocated.” You said, a little more serious than before. “Ford, I really like you. I know we’ve only known each other for a month, but I want to get to know you better. As more than just a research partner.” You teased, poking him in the arm. “Are you sure you want that? There’s a lot you don’t know, and there’s still the issue of… you know who.” You knew the demon might be an issue. But that’s why you were in Gravity Falls, after all. The town was a hot-spot of anomalies and being directly involved with one would certainly help your research, even if it was a little dangerous. 

“I’m sure. You’re not going to scare me off so easy, Stanford Pines.” He blushed a bit at the use of his full name. He wasn’t used to hearing you call him anything but Ford and it sounded nice. “We’ll have more time to get to know each other once you’re safe. I’ve got some things that I used to keep the Shack and my family safe, so we’ll use that on you as well.” Right back to scientist Ford. You weren’t exactly surprised. He was a determined person and he had a goal to accomplish. You liked that about him.

\--

He helped you get up and waited outside the room when you got dressed. You left the room once you were ready and the two of you went down the stairs towards the lab. You expected his equipment would be in the lab, but he went through a different door you hadn’t noticed before.

It was lit mostly by candles and you saw remnants of banners that seemed to have been burned on the ground. There was a large screen with bundles of wires coming out of it. Ford pulled a chair over for you. “I made this to essentially make my mind immune to his tricks, but I finished it after I needed it.” He then proceeded to knock on his skull, a metal clanging sound coming from it. “Instead, I got a metal plate installed in my head. But this should work for you, since it worked for the kids and Stan.”

He picked up something that looked like a helmet and placed it on your head. Metal bars moved in around the sides of your head. “This shouldn’t take too long. This machine essentially reads your thoughts and protects them from tampering, even from a dream demon.” He started the machine before you could object and it started scanning your thoughts.

“It’ll start with surface thoughts, but eventually it will go deeper into your mind.” He explained, sitting at the console and monitoring the machine to make sure it didn’t malfunction. You hoped you could keep your mind on the matter at hand. 

Unfortunately, it didn’t matter how focused you were. The machine got past all of the surface thoughts and began to scan your deeper thoughts. You hated that it was reading them all out loud. You couldn’t imagine what Ford would think of you after he heard everything.

It was reading out each thought systematically. “Is all of my work worth the effort? Am I doing the right thing with my life? What if I’m never good enough?” All of your insecurities were being read aloud and you knew it had to be done. You could hear Ford typing away at the keyboard at the console, probably keeping track of any irregularities in the scan.

And then the thoughts came that you were really hoping would be looked over. “What was Ford’s last partner like? Am I his type? I wonder what he would look like without-” When you heard that one start to be read, you jerked out of the seat and pulled the helmet off before it could finish. 

“What are you doing? The scan isn’t done.” Ford asked, much more nonchalantly than you were expecting. “I uh… I have to pee.” He blinked at you. “You haven’t had anything to drink since the last time you were in the bathroom.” He said, and you felt your chest tighten. “Um… I uh, well…” You were fumbling. There was no way to save this. “Is it because you don’t want me hearing your thoughts? I wasn’t listening, if that makes you feel any better.” There was no way he didn’t hear those last ones, especially since his name was said. 

You took a deep breath, accepted your fate, and sat back down in the chair. He fixed the helmet back onto your head and continued the scan. It picked up right where it left off.

“I wonder what he would look like without that towel.”

Suddenly, the machine stopped reading your thoughts. It couldn’t have been done, you definitely had more secrets. But once you looked over at the screen, you saw it had just been paused. By Ford, it seemed.

“Okay, I heard that one.” He admitted, still facing the screen. “That was… about me, correct?” You could feel your face burning red. If you had just let the machine run its course, he probably wouldn’t have heard it. “...yeah, it was.” You mumbled, thoroughly embarrassed. 

Ford swiveled around in his chair to face you. “How are you feeling?” That seemed like a weird question to be asking in this situation. “I’m fine. My head doesn’t hurt as much anymore.” He stood from his seat and moved towards you. “Maybe we should take a break from the machine, just for a bit. I don’t want your headache to return.” You blinked, trying to figure out what was going on. “Ford, I’m fine, we can keep going.”

He was now standing right in front of you and you had to look up to see his face. There was a look in his eyes you hadn’t seen before. “I really think it would be best to take a break.” His voice was low as he placed his hands on the armrests of your seat. This time, you were the idiot.

“O-oh, you mean…” You trailed off, not wanting to assume the wrong thing. “You were wondering what I’d look like without the towel, yes?” You swallowed roughly, realizing your throat had gone dry. “Yes.”

Just as he began to pull his jacket off, you heard footsteps coming toward the room. Ford groaned and rubbed his forehead. He moved away from you so it wouldn’t look strange to the person coming in.

“Grunkle Ford, is… Oh! You’re down here.” Dipper said, seeing you when he entered the room. “Mabel and I were wondering if you were doing alright.” You smiled at him. “Yeah, I’m good. Sorry for whatever happened last night.” The teen shrugged. “I’ve seen worse, you’re fine. Anyways, once you’re done down here, Mabel and I wanted to show you how we protected the Shack last summer so you could understand what happened a little better.” That actually sounded really helpful. “That sounds great, Dipper. I’ll meet you guys upstairs when we’re finished, okay?” Dipper nodded and headed back upstairs.

The room was quiet, until Ford started laughing. “That went just perfectly, didn’t it?” It had been kind of funny, you’d admit. “Sure did. Are you okay if I go with them?” Ford waved a hand. “Of course, of course. You have research you need to do! I’ll get this finished and you should be safe.” He sat back down at the console and continued the scan. Thankfully, the rest of your thoughts weren’t nearly as embarrassing.

Once it was finished, he helped you get the helmet off and placed it back on the console. It was just a bit awkward as you were about to leave. “I’ll, uh, I’ll see you later.” You said, but he didn’t respond. “Ford? What’s up?” 

“Are you going home after you’re done with the kids?” He asked, standing up to meet you at the door. You shrugged. “I’m not sure. I don’t know if I feel entirely comfortable being in my house by myself tonight.” He nodded in understanding. “If you’d like, my room is always open to you.” He said it so casually, like he hadn’t just invited you to spend the night with him anytime you wanted. You weren’t going to say no, of course. 

“I’ll definitely consider that.” You said, smiling just a bit. But before you could leave, he grabbed your wrist. “Come back tonight. Please.” It wasn’t an offer; it was a request. “Okay, I can come back. But I’ll need something to wear to bed. Mabel spilled glitter on the pterodactyl shirt and I don’t want to find the glitter all over me in the morning.” Ford laughed a bit. “I’ll find something for you.” He let go of your wrist. “I’ll see you then.” 

And then you were gone.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> i'm so sorry this took more than a week! i've got a few other projects i'm working on, plus school and work. i'll do my best to stay on my release schedule from now on. thanks for your patience!

If someone had told you that you would see a unicorn that day, you wouldn’t have believed them. And if they had told you that said unicorn would be terrified of a sweet 13 year old girl, you would’ve thought they were insane.

Alas, that’s how your day went. 

Dipper and Mabel led you through the forest to an area you’d never seen before and played a recording of what sounded like an incredibly deep-voiced man, and suddenly a large stone structure appeared from under the ground.

Mabel explained to you, with disdain in her voice, that she had come to retrieve hair from a unicorn but was told that only someone with a pure heart could do so. She then learned that unicorns are, in her own words, poopy buttheads and instead punched it in the face.

You had never been so proud of her.

After the unicorns confirmed Mabel’s story, you left their sanctum, much to their relief.

The walk back to the Shack was pretty long. The kids were quiet for the beginning of the walk, but then slowed down to walk on either side of you. It was a bit disconcerting, they definitely had something they wanted to say.

“Hey.” Dipper said, and you assumed he meant to get your attention. “Yes?” You directed your attention to him, and he had a fairly serious look on his face. “Do you remember the conversation we had the other day? Before the whole thing happened?” You nodded. “Yeah, I do. It’s one of the few things I actually remember pretty clearly from that night.” Dipper went quiet.

“So, if Grunkle Ford were to stay in Gravity Falls, would you stay too?” Looked like he was jumping right back into the conversation. You didn’t know how to answer the other night and you still didn’t know now. “That’s not a simple answer, Dipper. I’ve got my own goals that I want to accomplish and I can’t do that if I stay here forever.” Mabel, who’d been uncharacteristically silent the whole time, groaned. “Yeah but you’d get to be with Grunkle Ford! Wouldn’t that make it worth it?”

It was almost funny how naive the kids were. You were sure that one day they would realize how silly their question was. Life wasn’t like a movie, where one person gives up their dream just because they were in love with someone. You couldn’t do that, not after years of working towards being able to do this, to travel the world in search of anomalies. 

“You two don’t even know if he would want to stay here anyways. And even if he did, I’ve got things I have to do in places other than Gravity Falls. I just don’t think it’s possible for me to stay here and achieve my own goals.” Both of them looked disappointed in your answer.

As much as you wanted to have more time with them and Stan and Ford, it just wasn’t possible in the long run. And as you thought more about it, you realized that you were getting really close to Ford. More than you probably should, if this would be your last summer in Gravity Falls.

And he had asked you to stay the night with him.

The kids noticed that you were thinking. “We know that it’s a lot to ask, but Grunkle Stan is a lost case. We still have hope for Grunkle Ford. He’s been alone for a long time and he deserves someone like you.” Dipper explained, sounding like he knew more about Ford than he was letting on. You sighed, knowing there was a lot for you to think about. “I really like your great uncle. We have a lot in common and he’s a great person, but I just don’t know if that’s enough for me to give up on my dream, you know? Have either of you ever been in that position?” 

The twins looked knowingly at each other. “Last summer, Grunkle Ford offered to make me his apprentice and handle the rest of my schooling, as long as I stayed in Gravity Falls and didn’t go back home to California. I would have stayed here, without Mabel. And, other than that, it seemed perfect to me. But I would’ve been without my best friend.” Dipper said, as Mabel tugged her sweater sleeves over her hands. “It was stupid that I even thought I could go through the rest of my life without her. I’m not saying you and Grunkle Ford are the same as me and Mabel, but I know how much he cares about you. I’m sure you two could figure something out.” 

You’d have to think about it. As much as you’d like to stay longer, you had other things you wanted to do than study Gravity Falls.

The three of you soon arrived back at the Shack. Stan was working on his car and you assumed Ford was inside. 

“I’ll… definitely think about what you guys said, okay?” You told the kids, not wanting to dash their hopes, but also keeping your options open. They nodded and ran off to talk to Stan.

It was getting dark out. You had to decide if you were going to stay the night or not. If you didn’t, you’d definitely hurt your relationship with Ford, but it’d be easier to stay distant and not get too attached. On the other hand, if you stayed, you could assume you’d be in for a very interesting and fun night. But you knew you’d just get more attached to him. It would make it even harder to leave Gravity Falls for good when it came time. 

You really didn’t know what to do.

Until Ford came out from the Shack, wearing a white tank top and jeans, both looking like they were covered in oil and dirt. He stretched his arms up over his head, tugging his shirt up just a bit and it took far too long for you to realize you were staring.

Ford called your name, pulling you out of your trance. He waved you over to the porch, and you swallowed roughly, trying to pull yourself together. He had sweat on his brow and he definitely looked like he had been working on something.

You stepped up to the porch. “Uh, hey.” You said, doing your best to not look at Ford. “How was your time with the kids?” He asked, wiping down his arms with a rag. “Oh, well, they just showed me the unicorns and told me how you protected the Shack. Pretty uneventful, but still helpful.” He tucked the rag into his back pocket. “That’s good. So, are you coming in?”

Moment of truth. 

Giving Ford a subtle once-over, you made your decision. “Yeah, I’m coming in.”

\--

The two of you went inside, and Stan and the kids followed shortly after. You learned that Stan and Ford had actually been working on the car together, as Stan was showing his brother how to do a tune-up. Apparently, Ford had been a bit offended at the notion that he wouldn’t know how, but quickly learned that he had absolutely no idea how to fix a car.

You laughed a bit at Ford’s realization, much to his chagrin. “Well, how was I supposed to know how different my inventions are from a car?” He tried to explain himself to no avail. Stan just reminded him that he doesn’t know everything and then left to find the kids again.

And you two were alone. 

You’d been alone with him before, of course. But not in this kind of situation. Not when you knew he reciprocated your feelings towards him.

He seemed uncomfortable, like he didn’t know what to say. He had been the one to ask you to come back and stay the night, so you expected him to be the one to initiate something. “Ford? Are you alright?” You asked, laughing just a bit when he looked a bit spooked by you suddenly speaking.

“Oh, yes, I’m fine. Just a bit tired from working with Stanley.” His eyes did look slightly glazed over. Maybe it wasn’t the best idea for you to stay the night. “I’m sure working with him is exhausting, mentally and physically.” Ford let out a short laugh at your joke, which meant he thought it was incredibly funny. You’d learned that rather quickly. “If you’re that tired, I think it would be best if I went back to my house for the night. I’m not sure you’ll have the energy to…” You trailed off as you saw his eyes go wide. “What exactly do you think I won’t have the energy for, hm?” 

You felt your face start to burn. He was definitely implying something you hadn’t meant to. “I just meant that… I don’t want to keep you up all night…” You mumbled, soon realizing that you were still implying something you didn’t mean.

Ford’s eyes were fixed on your face. “I can catch up on sleep another time.” He seemed far more confident than he had before, and you were getting used to it. 

Glancing out the window, you saw the kids heading off with their friends. You remembered them mentioning an overnight adventure earlier that day. And Stan still hadn’t come back in the house. “Where’s Stan?” You asked, trying to build up the confidence to do something. “He’s got business out of town. Won’t be back until tomorrow afternoon.”

The sun was starting to set. The inside of the Shack was covered in a warm, orange glow. And the most handsome man you’d ever seen in your life was standing in front of you, almost blatantly offering himself to you.

And there was no one else in the house.

You took a breath, pulling together all of the confidence you had, and grabbed Ford by the front of his shirt. He only had a second to be surprised before you were kissing him. 

Based on his reaction, you assumed he’d never been the one to be pulled into a kiss. And he certainly hadn’t ever been kissed like this. You felt your face pressed flush against his, and his skin was heating up quickly. You could feel his scruff against your skin and it felt far better than the last time. Especially since you hadn’t just accused him of being an idiot.

His hands eventually found their place on your hips, moving up slowly to rest on your sides. He gripped you just a bit, like he wanted to make sure you weren’t going to slip away. 

Eventually he had to pull away to breath. His face was flushed and his pupils were blown wide. “We should… Go to my room.” He said breathlessly, a hand reaching for your arm and beginning to tug you towards said room.

This was really happening. You were going to go to Ford’s room, and not because you’d had a mental break caused by a dream demon.

You were going to fuck this old man until he couldn’t walk.

The trip to his room was fast. Both of you were far too eager and it was fairly obvious. He practically slammed the door behind you and as soon as it was closed, you were being pressed up against it. You were then the surprised one when you felt his arms slip down your back and hook under your thighs, pressing you even further against the door.

Instinctively, you wrapped your legs around his waist and immediately felt just how eager he was for this to happen.

The new pressure against him made him groan and it was the most sinful thing you’d ever heard. You felt heat rush from your head all the way down your body, and held onto him even tighter while he moved to kiss at your neck.

You wouldn’t have taken Ford to be this passionate, but you shouldn’t have been surprised. It seemed like he never half-assed anything, including this. 

He started moving his hands towards the hem of your shirt, his fingers just barely slipping under it. The rough skin on his fingers against your heated skin felt incredible. At that moment, you thought nothing would ever feel better.

Ford quickly proved you wrong.

His hands slid fully under your shirt and splayed out against your skin, six fingers covering more area than just five would. You nearly moaned from how good he felt against your hot skin, but contained yourself. He’d need to do more than that to get a moan out of you.

And of course, in typical Ford fashion, he did exactly that. You felt his hips roll against, pressing what was beginning to feel like an impressive length against you. Your hands slid into the back of his hair as you let out a moan. As you did, you felt him nip at your neck and subsequently kiss at the spot he bit.

Normally, you’d be bothered by someone trying to mark you, but that didn’t seem to be Ford’s intention. And even if it was, you weren’t really annoyed at the idea of people seeing mark made by him.

You felt him pulling your shirt up over your head and you moved so he could get it off completely. He tossed it to the side without looking away from you, like he’d been caught in a trance.

“Do you know… how many times I imagined looking at you like this?” He muttered, voice low and rough. It sent shivers down your spine. “It’s even better than I ever thought.” You definitely had not expected this kind of talk from him, but he continued to pleasantly surprise you.

But now it felt a little unfair that he’d taken off your shirt and he was still fully clothed. You moved your own hands down to the hem of his tank and tugged up, unable to move it very far due to you being pressed right against him.

Instead of moving away from you, he chose to instead pick you up and toss you onto his bed. You watched in amazement as he pulled his shirt over his head, still unexpected muscle moving as he did. Seeing him like this was even better than when he’d caught you off guard after his shower. This time was intentional, and it was going to get far better.

You propped yourself up on your elbows to watch as he unbuttoned his pants and tossed them into the growing pile of clothes. He glanced over at you, your face burning red as your eyes wandered up and down his body. He motioned to your own pants and you took that to mean you should also take them off. He went to grab something from a drawer as you shimmied out of your pants. He hadn’t looked back yet, and you thought it might be fun to surprise him.

Before he looked back, you unhooked your bra and tugged off your underwear, throwing him into the pile as well. In this kind of situation, an attractive man about to see you fully naked, you’d usually be beyond nervous. But for some reason, with Ford, that anxiety was gone.

Finally, after what felt like forever, he turned back around with a small bottle and foil package in his hand. And you got exactly the reaction you were hoping for. His eyes went wide and he had to catch his breath. He definitely hadn’t expected you to completely strip down, but he seemed pleased.

He stood at the edge of the bed in just his boxers, an obvious tent showing. Running his hand through his hair, he steadied his breathing. As you watched him, he almost looked nervous. “Ford, are you… alright?” You asked, hoping he was doing okay.

Meeting your eyes, he gave you a small smile. “Just a bit worried. I don’t want to disappoint you.” You returned his smile, as reassuring as possible. “There’s no way you’d ever be able to disappoint me, Ford.” He took a deep breath and tucked his thumbs under the waistband. You did your best not to stare as he dropped his boxers.

But it was damn hard not to stare. 

You watched him as he moved over you on the bed and you let your legs fall to the side so he could easily settle between them. You felt his length against your thigh and you could’ve fallen apart right then.

His hand slid up your side while the other wrapped around the base of his cock as he started stroking it lazily. And if that wasn’t the hottest thing you’d ever seen in your life.

Unconsciously, you jutted your hips up into him. Ford groaned, the look on his face giving away how much he wanted you. “Is it okay if I…” He started, hand now moving to settle between your thighs. “Yes. Absolutely.” As soon as you answered, you felt Ford’s fingers run over your clit. His thumb settled on the sensitive bundle of nerves and rolled over it. 

While he expertly stimulated your clit, he moved a finger to slowly slide inside you. In and out, you felt every movement of his finger, and then even more so when he added another finger. You were beginning to feel stretched out, as he started to scissor his fingers while inside you. Although you were sure it was necessary, considering what you saw when he dropped his boxers.

You knew you were soaking his fingers and you might’ve been embarrassed by how wet you were, if you weren’t so incredibly turned on. You couldn’t think of anything other than how badly you want to fuck him.

“Ford, please…” You moaned out, sliding your hand down his chest and wrapping it around his length. His breath hitched when he felt your fingers around him. “Yes?” He responded, slowly starting to pull his fingers out of you. “Please let me ride you…” You got it out, just barely before you whined, Ford’s fingers now fully out of you. “You want to do that…?” He whispered, sitting back on his knees. You nodded, too breathless to fully answer.

He didn’t even respond. He just scrambled to the front of the bed and laid down beside where you were now sitting up. As you moved to get on top of him, he grabbed the condom and rolled it down over his cock. You sat over his thighs, knees to either side of him as he held the small bottle from earlier in his hand.

“It’s… lube. I kept it around for, uh, other purposes. But it’ll be good for this.” He was so awkward explaining what the lube was for, and avoiding what he’d been using it for. You grabbed the bottle from him and grinned. “Let me.” Pouring just the right amount into your hand, you wrapped it around his cock and slowly coated the condom in the lube. Ford’s mouth hung open as you did.

Once you felt he was thoroughly ready, you sat up and moved yourself over him. It looked like Ford had never been in a situation like this, because he had no idea where to put his hands. Before you started sliding down, you took a hold of his hands and placed them on your hips. He seemed more than happy to let you take control.

You had to move down slowly, so you could get used to the size of him stretching you out. You were glad that he had done what he had earlier, or it would’ve taken much longer for you to take him all in. When your skin met his, you felt his grip on you tighten. 

“Fuck.”

Did Ford just… swear? You’d never heard him swear before, but it was something you could get used to. It was hot.

Once you were able to comfortably move, you started moving your hips, rolling them back and forth at first and then up and down. You could hear the sound of skin against skin every time you came back down against him, and felt the heat of him against you. 

He felt like he was in heaven, if he believed in such a thing. You fit perfectly around him, like he had been made to be inside you. And you were much too far away from him. He sat up, letting you adjust to the new position before he fully wrapped his arms around your waist.

For the first time, you felt his chest against yours, warm and solid. He still let you stay in control but he started to thrust up into you, meeting your own movements with his. Your hands moved from his chest to his back, fingers dragging down his skin. He was sure it would leave marks, but he didn’t care at all.

Both of your movements soon started to become erratic, and you were both unable to control the sounds you were making. You were glad no one else was in the house; they definitely would’ve heard you. 

You could feel Ford throbbing inside you and you moved your hands up his back into his hair to tug lightly as you felt a tight, burning knot forming in your stomach.

“Oh fuck, Ford…!” You yelled, knowing you were so close to your end. Judging by the look on his face, he was too. He held you close to him, as if letting you go would kill him. You felt like you were melting against him as waves of heat rolled through your body. You had just enough energy to give a little more as he thrusted up into you one last time.

His cock throbbed harder inside you and he moaned out your name as he finished. He still held you tight against him as his head dropped against your collarbone. 

Both of you were quiet, neither of you having enough energy to speak right after. You felt him start to kiss at your still heated skin and you brushed your fingers gently through his hair. It was soft and thick, much more than you’d expected. You rested your head on his shoulder and just let yourself relax in the moment.

You knew you’d have to get off him eventually, but he didn’t seem to mind and he hadn’t exactly gone soft yet either. 

Glancing towards the window, you saw the moon shining in the room. It was late, you knew. And you had things you needed to do tomorrow. You were sure he did too.

“Ford…?” You said quietly, and he looked up at you. His eyes were soft and he looked so calm. “Yes?” His voice was so gentle and you almost melted at the sound of it. “Do you think we should try to get some sleep?” He smiled and sighed. “Yes, I suppose we probably should.” With more strength than you were expecting, he lifted you up and put you to his side, laying back down on the bed. 

He got up and tossed the condom in a trash bin. “I got you some clothes to wear. I couldn’t find any pants that would fit you but…” He tossed you a shirt. “I hope that’ll be comfortable.” You looked down to see it was a large sweatshirt for a university you’d never heard of. “Backupsmore?” Ford groaned. “It’s a long story.” You laughed. It seemed like this family had a lot of long stories you were yet to hear. 

You found your underwear and put it on before pulling the sweatshirt on. It was soft and comfy and, best of all, it smelled just like Ford. You were keeping this, for sure.

Ford joined you in his bed again. He lifted up the covers and you happily got under with him. You quickly realized how tired you were. It was difficult going multiple days without proper sleep. Almost as soon as he wrapped his arms around you and pulled you back against him, you were asleep.

And you slept the whole night.


	7. Chapter 7

The sun gently lighting the room woke you up. The early morning light of the Pacific Northwest was one of your favorite things about the region. It wasn’t a sudden harsh sunlight, but a sweet blue and yellow wave of sun washing over the bedroom. 

You’d honestly expected Ford to already be awake and working in the lab, but you were pleasantly surprised to roll over and hit a firm wall of warmth. He was still sound asleep.

He looked so strange without his glasses. He had taken them off some time during the night and you were nearly surprised when you saw his face without them. He almost looked like a different person.

You just watched him for a bit, waiting for him to wake up. You didn’t want to wake him. He didn’t seem like the kind of person that ever let himself rest and he looked so peaceful sleeping like this.

But as you scanned his features, you realized something was off. Sure, he looked a little strange without his glasses, but it was something else. You couldn’t figure out what it was until Ford started to wake up.

He blinked a few times before fully opening his eyes. That’s when you realized what was wrong. His eyes were yellow, his pupils long and black. Just the way he’d described your eyes on Summerween. 

You did your best not to react at first, trying to assess the situation before doing anything. But before you even had the chance to decide what to do, a sickly grin stretched across Ford’s face.  **“Hey there toots! You must be Sixer’s new lady friend.”** That definitely wasn’t Ford’s voice. 

Ford had only told you a little bit about this dream demon. Most of your information about him came from the twins. They’d mentioned his name in passing, but you couldn’t remember it right then.  **“Oh, I’m Bill! Bill Cipher.”** So he could read your mind. Great.

**“Well if you’d just talk to me, I wouldn’t have to read your mind.”** You furrowed your brow. “What is this? Are you possessing Ford?” He let out a sardonic laugh.  **“Not yet! This is just a dream, for now.”** That was a bit of a relief, other than the menacing foreshadowing of something to come from the demon. “And how exactly are you in my dreams?” 

‘Ford’ squinted at you.  **“I can’t give away all my secrets. That would take away the fun!”** This didn’t feel very fun to you. “Alright, so what do you want with me?” 

That grin came back and it sent shivers down your spine.  **“I just want your help. And in return, I can help you.”** That didn’t seem very wise, but you’d hear him out regardless.  **“If you let me, oh I don’t know, possess your body for just a few hours, I’ll give you all the answers you’ve been looking for. And, bonus, you’ll learn everything you’ve ever wanted and still be able to stay here with old Fordsie.”** He really did know how to manipulate people, just like Ford said.

His offer was appealing, other than the possession part. But you weren’t that stupid. “That’s gonna be a no from me, sorry.” You were expecting him to be angry, but he just shrugged.  **“That’s fine. I’ll get you, you can bet on that.”**

You jolted awake, sitting up in bed. Apparently, your initial thought about Ford’s morning activities had been correct, because he was not in the bed. You took a moment to collect yourself before getting out of bed and heading out to try and find Ford.

The house was eerily empty, but you attributed that to the kids and Stan still being out. You heard some noise coming from the kitchen and you headed towards the entrance.

Ford stood in front of the stove, wearing his usual red sweater but instead of his coat, he was wearing an apron. The room smelled like pancakes and eggs. 

He had been making breakfast.

You knocked gently on the doorframe to get his attention and he immediately perked up and looked over to you. “Good morning! I got up early to make you breakfast in bed, but it seems like you’re out of bed so it’ll just be regular breakfast, I suppose.” He said, obviously happy to see you.

His early morning gesture was sweet. You’d never had someone make you breakfast, especially not after something like the previous night. But the sweetness began to go away as you realized you needed to tell Ford what happened.

“Ford, can I talk to you?” You asked as you sat down at the table. “Of course! Let me finish up here first, though.” He started plating pancakes, covering them in butter and syrup, before handing a plate to you. He sat down across from you and waited for you to speak. “I had a dream last night. Not necessarily a bad one, but it wasn’t great either.” He was listening intently now.

“It was about Bill.” He immediately tensed up at the name. “I had woken up next to you, but he’d possessed you and was trying to make a deal with me.” Ford tapped his fingers against the table. “You didn’t take the deal, did you?” He was deathly serious. You shook your head. “No, of course not. It was interesting though. He offered all of the knowledge I’ve been seeking in exchange for allowing him to possess my body for a few hours. It was like he already knew my greatest desires.” Ford nodded, hand on his chin. “Yes, that’s what happened to me. He offered to give me everything I was looking for, all the answers to any question I had or could have. But he just used me to try to take over our world.” 

It was a good thing you hadn’t accepted his deal. But you were still worried about one part. “After I declined his offer, he said he was still going to get me.” Ford shook his head. “He’s just trying to scare you. If you don’t shake his hand, he has no power over you. If he ever comes back, always say no to his deal. Nothing good can come of it.” 

You were sure he was right. And besides, there was nothing Bill could offer you that you couldn’t just obtain on your own. 

But as you looked at your pancakes and then up at Ford, you realized you had a weakness that Bill could exploit. You’d tried so hard to not have feelings for him, but you’d failed horribly. You never wanted to be away from him but you also didn’t want to lose him, no matter the cost.

Like an idiot, you’d gone and fallen in love with him. And you knew Bill would use that to his advantage. 

But Ford was none the wiser. All he was aware of, as far as you knew, was that you’d just spent the night with him and he was incredibly happy for it. He didn’t know you were a danger to him and his family. And you didn’t want to be, but if Bill could find a way to hurt him, you’d take any deal to keep him safe.

You had to leave Gravity Falls.

Once you were done with breakfast, Ford started to clean up. You had to think of something that would let you leave without suspicion. “So was there anything you wanted to do today?” He asked, looking back at you from the sink. “A-actually, as much as I would love to stay, I have some work I need to get done back at my house.” He continued to scrub away, not dismayed in the slightest. “Is it research-related? I can help, if you’d like.” 

“No, that’s okay. I’m sure you have things you need to do here. Stan and the kids will be back soon too, and they don’t need to be at the Shack by themselves.” You joked, hoping Ford would just accept it and move on. He laughed and shook his head. “They are a bunch of troublemakers.” He dried off the last dish and turned to face you, resting against the counter. “Will you be back tomorrow?”

You didn’t know if you’d even be in the state tomorrow. “I’ll do my best to stop by.” That was the best answer you could give without being brutally honest. You stood up to go back to his room and get dressed, but before you could leave, he wrapped an arm around your waist and pulled you close to him. He tilted your chin up and kissed you, the sticky sweet taste of syrup still on his lips. “I’ll see you soon.”

Everything he did just made it harder to leave. You walked shamefully to his room. You didn’t want to hurt him, but there was no right choice in this situation. No matter what you did, you were sure he would get hurt. At least this way, it was you doing it instead of a demon.

The drive back to your house was longer than you remembered. But it might’ve just been everything weighing down on you. 

You started packing your belongings as soon as you got inside. You wouldn’t stay in Gravity Falls for any longer than you had to. You’d seen what happened when Bill got his way last time and you wouldn’t be the one to cause that, especially if Ford could get caught in the crossfire. 

When you’d initially moved in, you hadn’t expected to stay for long, so most of the boxes you used to move there were still intact and ready to be used. Your car could fit a good amount of boxes, just enough to get you by somewhere else.

The furniture had been there when you moved in so you didn’t need to take that. You packed all of your belongings quickly and started moving boxes out to your car. As you were moving everything out, you called your landlord and let him know you were having a personal emergency and had to move out. He was fairly understanding, since you’d always been good at paying rent on time. 

By the end of the day, nearly everything you’d brought with you to Gravity Falls was in your car, save for a few chairs you’d bought but couldn’t fit in the trunk. It didn’t matter, you needed to leave as soon as possible. 

As you were getting ready to start your car, you saw the sweatshirt Ford had given you the previous night to sleep in. You hadn’t even noticed that you’d taken it with you. You thought about whether you should drop it off at the Shack first, but quickly realized that was a bad idea. Seeing him again would make you want to stay.

You started the car and headed towards the road that led out of town.

You didn’t know where you were going. You had no plan, just that you needed to leave before anyone got hurt because of you. 

The trees on the sides of the road made you feel small. Maybe you’d go somewhere else in the Pacific Northwest. It was beautiful and there were plenty of mysteries in the forest.

The edge of town was quickly approaching and as you saw the “Now Leaving Gravity Falls” sign, you finally accepted that you were really leaving. 

But as you got close to the sign, you car sputtered and you had to pull off to the side of the road. Your tank was full and you’d taken it into the mechanic recently, so there was no reason it should be breaking down. You popped the hood and got out to take a look.

Another car pulled up behind yours and you tensed up. It might’ve been someone trying to help, but the likelihood of that was slim to none. As the other driver exited their car, you looked over, trying to see who it was. Only when they got next to your car could you see that they had yellow eyes and black pupils. And then there was the voice.

**“If I can’t leave Gravity Falls, neither can you.”**


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> sorry this chapter took so long to come out! it's finals week for me so i've been pretty busy, but i'll have more free time during my winter break. this one is a little shorter than others, but hopefully the fluff will make up for it.
> 
> enjoy!

You felt like you couldn’t move. The demon stared at you with an unrelenting golden gaze that froze you to your very core. **“Listen toots, you’re my key to escaping this god-forsaken town and I’m not letting you go that easily. So I left a little piece of me in your dreams, and now whatever’s keeping me in Gravity Falls is gonna keep you here too!”**

So you didn’t even have the choice to escape. You were staying, until you could figure out some way to get out of Bill’s grasp. “Fine. But I’m still not helping you.” Thunderous laughter came from the demon. **“Then you’ll be stuck here forever. Or at least until you die!”**

He was right. You would die here if you didn’t do something about him. But you had no idea how to beat a dream demon.

Thankfully, you knew some people who did.

 **“Oh, you think the Pines will help you? Even after you abandoned them without even a goodbye?”** Bill snickered maliciously. “They… don’t know I tried to leave. It’ll be fine.” He laughed again. This was all very funny to him apparently. **“You seriously think those kids didn’t go to your house to find you when you didn’t come to the Shack today?”** You should’ve known better. Of course they’d go looking for you, even if Ford told them you were busy. 

“I’ll figure something out. I still have one of Ford’s journals!” You said, finally gaining the courage to move a step towards Bill. You immediately regretted it when his eyes turned black. **“That stupid journal won’t help you! You’re stuck here until you help me, and that’s that, sweet cheeks!”**

And then he disappeared. You were alone again. But maybe you weren’t, because somewhere in your head, there was a tiny piece of a dream demon that was going to do anything in his power to use you to try to destroy the world.

You couldn’t ask the Pines, not after what Bill said. They’d hate you for leaving like you tried to. But you didn’t know of anyone else who would know what to do in this situation. You were out of options.

So, you got back in your car and drove back to your house. You called your landlord, who was even more confused than when you left in the first place, and worked everything out. You took the essentials out of your car and back into the house. 

You’d gone through so many emotions in just one day, you were absolutely exhausted. But you were scared to sleep. What if that was how he would get to you? It seemed like you were the weakest to him when you were dreaming.

That made sense, of course. That was how he’d first gotten into your mind. You didn’t know how long you’d be able to go without sleeping, but you would do everything you could to stay awake. For the night, you would try to think of a way to rid him from your mind.

Without the help of the Pines.

You had limited knowledge of the demon. All you knew was what the twins and Ford had told you and the little you’d gleaned from your own interactions with him.

It was practically an impossible task. You didn’t have enough information about the demon to know how to get rid of him and you had no one to help you. You couldn’t sleep or he’d get to you. And you certainly couldn’t give into his demands or you’d be putting the world at risk.

Although, he never said he’d use you to take over the world. All he said is that you were the key to him escaping Gravity Falls. That didn’t necessarily mean he had any malicious intent. You wanted to leave the town too, so you could almost understand why he wanted to get out. Being stuck here forever didn’t sound appealing to you and you were sure it was the same for him. 

Were you really trying to sympathize with a demon?

It seemed like your only way out. To try and figure out what he wanted and how you could help him without it hurting anyone. It didn’t really look like you had any other options.

You looked out the window in your bedroom to see a pitch black sky. It was late, you decided, as you glanced at your phone to see the time. Far too late, but you couldn’t sleep. That was one risk you didn’t need to take. If you were going to help Bill, it would be of your own volition and not because he took control of you while you were sleeping. 

The night passed slow. It felt like an eternity before the sun began to rise. The light beaming into your home made it a little easier to keep your eyes open, since you weren’t sitting in the dark anymore. 

Making your way to your kitchen, you realized you didn’t have much in the way of food. You’d have to make a trip into town and do your best to remain unnoticed. 

You grabbed your keys and went out to your car. The drive into town wasn’t very long and soon, you were parking in front of the local grocery store. You got out of the car and glanced around the small lot, trying to see who was there.

That’s when you saw Stan’s car parked a few spaces down from yours.

You debated on whether you should leave or not, but the grumble in your stomach convinced you to stay. You’d just have to do your best to avoid whoever came in that car. 

That meant you should avoid the baking, candy, snack, and soda aisles. Other than that, you’d be safe. So you went down the produce aisle and started grabbing some fruits and vegetables. 

As you made your way around the store, carefully avoiding any spots the Pines family frequented, you congratulated yourself on being able to get through your grocery trip without any of them seeing you.

But when you left the store, you saw the full Pines family standing by your car. Stan, the kids, and Ford were all standing by the trunk of your car, seemingly waiting for you to come over. You froze up, you didn’t know what to do.

You weren’t given the chance to decide what to do, because Ford soon spotted you standing outside the doors of the store. You didn’t know what was going to happen. Was he going to wait for you to come over? Was he going to yell at you from afar or do it right to your face? 

What you weren’t expecting was for him to run over to you and throw his arms around you in a tight embrace. “I was so worried about you…” He mumbled against your skin, sending tingles down your spine. 

He wasn’t… mad? You had convinced yourself that the whole family would be furious with you for leaving without a word, but maybe they didn’t know about that.

“I went by your house last night but it was empty. That really scared me, so I searched the town and the woods for you the whole night.” He said as he pulled away, rubbing the back of his head. “Where were you? What happened?” You almost broke down in tears right then. You’d been holding everything in, keeping it to yourself, because you were sure that no matter what you did, Ford would get hurt.

But apparently, you’d forgotten how much he actually cared about you.

“Can we talk about this somewhere more private?” You asked quietly, feelings eyes on the two of you. “Of course! We can go to the Shack, if you’d like.” You nodded. “That sounds perfect.” 

The two of you walked back to your car and the kids helped you pack your groceries into the trunk while Ford explained the situation to Stan. Once you were ready to go, the two sets of twins piled into Stan’s car and you got into yours and started to prepare yourself to explain everything that had happened to them.

The drive to the Shack was as beautiful as ever. You almost couldn’t believe you wanted to leave this place so soon. But then you remembered the demon in your mind and that made you want to leave again.

You parked in front of the Shack where you usually did and went inside. The family were all sitting in the living room, and Ford had pulled in an extra chair for you.

You didn’t know if you were ready for this. But you had to be.

“I met Bill. And he’s trying to make a deal with me.” You started, expecting some sort of reaction from them. They just sat and continued to listen. “He wants to use me to somehow find a way to leave Gravity Falls. I don’t know what his intent is, but he’s made me multiple offers. I refused them, of course. He’s relentless, though. Apparently, when I had that dream with him in it, he left a piece of himself in my mind. So as long as he can’t leave Gravity Falls, neither can I.” Ford and Stan furrowed their brows in unison. “Did you try to leave?” Stan asked, Dipper nodding in agreement with the question.

“I… Well, yeah. I was worried about Bill figuring out how to use me and hurting you guys. So I decided it would be better if I just wasn’t close enough to let him hurt you.” They were far more understanding than you thought they would be. You should’ve come to them when this all started. Why did you even think they’d be unwilling to help in any way they could?

Ford looked like he was still thinking. “I haven’t heard of him leaving part of his being in someone’s mind, but I suppose he never had a reason to until now. I’ll have to do a scan of your mind again to make sure that’s what he actually did. For now, you should stay here. He won’t be able to possess you as long as you’re in the Shack. He might be able to contact you through your dreams, but that’s all he’ll be able to do.” He took your hands in his and gave them a gentle squeeze. “I promise you that we will figure this out. Together.” 

The rest of the day was spent getting you set up in the Shack. Ford insisted you stay in his room, his stated purpose being so he could keep an eye on you, but his brother and the kids knew better. With ‘ooh’s galore, Ford stammered over his explanation as to why he felt he was best fit to watch over you only to give up and accept their teasing.

You made yourself comfortable in Ford’s bed that night, or as comfortable as you could be while still wearing your normal clothes. Ford came in later, having spent much of that day in his lab going over what he knew about Bill and his abilities. 

“Do you need something to wear?” He asked, closing the door behind him. “That would be nice. I’m sorry I didn’t give you back that sweatshirt you gave me the other night.” Ford waved it off. “It’s fine. You can keep it, if you’d like. I don’t wear it that often anymore.” He turned around to search through his drawers, and emerged victorious with a t-shirt and a pair of sweatpants that didn’t look like they’d fit him. “I went out and got some clothes that I thought would fit you better for when you stay the night here.” He tossed the clothes to you and you were more than happy to accept them. 

You got out of the bed and changed into the far more comfortable outfit Ford had given you and you could feel him watching you as you did. You turned around and saw him staring, and when he realized you caught him, his face flushed red. “I-- um, I’m… You’re… I… Sorry. You are very nice to look at.” You tried not to, but you laughed. “You’re allowed to look at me, Ford.” He nodded, face still red. “Yes, but I don’t want you to feel like I’m objectifying you in any way. You’re more than just a pretty thing to be looked at.” 

He was sweet. Far too sweet than he had any right to be, but it was more than appreciated. “And you don’t make me feel like I’m just something to look at. You don’t need to worry about that, Ford.” You got into bed and got under the covers. You felt him get in beside you. “I suppose you’re right. Besides, what kind of person doesn’t want to admire their girlfriend any chance they get?” He said, pulling the covers over himself and placing an arm over your side. 

He said girlfriend. 

You hadn’t thought much about your exact relationship with him, but you didn’t think you constituted ‘girlfriend’ status to him yet. And you hadn’t had a partner in years, so it was strange to now think of yourself as someone’s partner. 

You turned over in the bed to face him. He’d already closed his eyes, ready to sleep after a long day. “Ford?” You said quietly, not wanting to scare him. He opened his eyes again, and they were the usual soft brown you had grown accustomed to. Relief washed over you. “You called me your girlfriend.” He smiled at you, gentle and sweet. “Well, yeah. Is there a problem with that?” You traced your fingers along the mattress until they met his bare stomach. You let your fingers drift over his skin as you returned his smile. “Not as long as you’re okay with being my boyfriend.” He let out a small laugh. “Of course I’m fine with that. Now you should get some sleep. You’ve had a hard couple of days and I want to make sure you’re well rested before we start making plans to figure everything out.”

He was right, as usual. You snuggled into him, wrapping your arm around his side and placing your other hand against his chest. He rested his cheek against the top of your head after placing a small kiss on it. 

As you felt yourself drifting off to sleep, you heard him mumble something. “I’ll protect you, I promise. I love you…”


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> just pure smut, for your enjoyment

You were thankful that your night wasn’t filled with nightmares. You’d had a few strange dreams, but it wasn’t anything worrying. As you began to fully wake up, you had almost forgotten that you were sharing a bed with Ford. He was still asleep, which you thought was a bit strange considering how early he seemed to get up usually. But you also figured he’d been stressed and worrying about you for a while, so you’d let him sleep. 

Then again, he wasn’t snoring. You recalled him snoring when he was in a deep sleep, and he wasn’t doing that at the moment. You couldn’t tell if he was quite awake yet but he was not completely asleep. 

There was definitely a way you could test that.

It had been a stressful few days for both of you and you were sure he could use some fun. Now it was just about trying to decide if he would appreciate the kind of fun you had in mind. Well, you’d never find out without trying.

Ford slept mostly unclothed, meaning he was only wearing his boxers. At least, he usually did if he had time to get undressed before collapsing into bed after staying up late working. Thankfully, last night he hadn’t stayed up too late and had gone to bed with you. 

You got under the covers a bit more, allowing you room to wrap your arm around Ford’s center. You trailed your fingers up and down his side, causing him to stir just a bit. He was mumbling something you couldn’t quite make out, so you pressed kisses up his chest and to his neck so you could hear him better.

It turned out he was not mumbling. He was moaning your name. He wasn’t awake, as far as you could tell, and he was moaning out your name. 

Ford wasn’t even fully conscious and he was already turning you on. It was entirely unfair how much control he had over you, but you’d turn the tables on him soon enough. 

And as you thought more about the situation, you realized he was absolutely having a dream about you and it certainly wasn’t turning out to be a dry one, in more than one sense of the word.

Dirty old man.

It couldn’t hurt to help him out, you thought. He might even appreciate it. You figured it was never fun to wake up unsatisfied from a dream like that. So you’d be the one to help satisfy him. After all, you were the one he was dreaming about.

You slid further under the covers, putting an arm on either side of Ford’s hips to stabilize yourself as you moved to your knees between his legs. Putting one hand on his hip, you moved the other to find the protrusion you were looking for.

As soon as your hand met his length, even over his boxers, Ford let out a moan. You honestly weren’t sure if he was awake at this point, considering how loud he was being, but he was still moaning out your name, as if he was practically begging you to keep going. Your fingers met the waistband of his boxers and tugged down just enough for him to spring out.

You wrapped your hand around his length and were surprised at how your fingers did not meet even though you had fully wrapped your hand around him. 

The moment you began to move your hand, Ford woke up. He was definitely awake this time, because his eyes, wide and astonished, looked down at you as he slowly propped himself up on his elbows.

“Well, good morning to you too.” He said, voice still rough from sleep. Your head was dangerously close to him as you looked up to see him, eyes fully open and hair messy. “You were having an interesting dream. Thought I should help.” You explained, trying to be as casual as possible when you felt like you were about to explode.

But he just grinned at you, like there was nothing strange about this situation at all. “Don’t let me keep you from it.” You felt your breath catch in your throat at that, almost a bit stunned at how he was handling this. 

Still hovering just above his hips, you decided to keep going with your plan to help him. He had been hard before he woke up, but when he actually woke up and saw you with your hand around his cock, it seemed like he only grew harder if it was possible. 

You licked your lips and slowly let your tongue drag over the head, gathering up any pre-cum that had leaked out while he was dreaming. He let out a groan like you hadn’t heard before. You glanced up, mouth still hanging open above his cock.

“Ford…?” You asked, lifting your head up just a bit. He met your gaze and swallowed. “Yes?” This all felt very strange, talking to him like this, so you just continued to stroke him while speaking to keep yourself occupied. “Has anyone ever, um, done this for you?” The way he reacted just to your tongue was beyond anything that he’d ever done before, and it seemed like he hadn’t felt something like that before.

You saw his face turning a bit pink when you asked. “Not… exactly.” That wasn’t really an answer. You lifted a brow, expecting a better one. “No, no one has ever done this for me.” He admitted, face still turning red. 

“Hm.” You turned your gaze back down, hand still stroking him slowly. “What? What is it?” He almost sounded frantic, his former confidence starting to fade. “Just means I’ll be the first person to taste you.” Ford began stammering, unsure of how to respond without sounding like an idiot. It was your turn to grin at him before rolling your tongue over his cock again. He let out a long sigh, face returning to its usual color as you started to go down on him.

You kept a hand on his hip to keep yourself steady as you slowly began moving farther down on his cock. Once your mouth was completely around the head, Ford groaned again. You were going to make him explode if you kept this up. 

And that was something you really wanted to see.

Hollowing out your cheeks, you sucked on the head of his cock, rolling your tongue over the sensitive tip. Something that sounded like a strangled moan came from your companion as his hand sped to wrap itself in your hair. Despite never having received a blowjob before, Ford was maneuvering his hand in your hair expertly. His fingers laced through and tugged gently when you were doing something especially good.

He was long and thick, and you really weren’t sure if you’d be able to fit him in your mouth entirely. But you sure as hell were going to try. 

Slowly, you started to move down his length more and more, encouraged by his hand gripping your hair. And then you felt him hit the back of your throat. You nearly gagged, but maintained your composure, just barely. There was still enough of him not in your mouth that you could wrap your hand around the base of his cock and just touch your lips with the top of your hand. But you were determined. It was his first time with this and you wanted it to be the best thing he’d ever felt.

You pulled off of him, much to his dismay, but he was quickly distracted by the string of saliva leading from the head of his cock to your lips. “Oh, holy fuck.” You’d never get used to him swearing like that, but you definitely liked it. “I’m going to try something, let me know if you don’t like it and I will never do it again.” You said, getting ready to possibly destroy your throat. Ford looked ready for anything as he ran his fingers through your hair.

Taking a deep breath, you put your mouth back over his cock and slid down, down, down until he hit the back of your throat once again. Your hand gripped the base of him and you did your best to open your throat as you continued to go down. Ford was moaning, not even making intelligible words, just moans. You closed your eyes to make it a bit easier to keep going and you soon felt your nose hit his pelvis. 

You had to hold Ford’s hips down so he wouldn’t jerk up into your mouth and make you gag even more than you already were. His skin was so heated, he felt like he was about to catch on fire. His grip in your hair was tight but he wasn’t trying to force you down further. You sucked on his length as you dragged your mouth back up him, your tongue running along the vein on the underside of his cock. 

Once you’d fully pulled off him, the saliva string still present, he moved his hand from your hair to rest under your chin. “You… really didn’t have to do that. But I did enjoy it. A lot.” You licked your lips again, tasting of warm salt. “I’m not done yet, Ford.” His eyes widened and he gripped your chin a bit in surprise. “You’re not?” You shook your head. “This time, feel free to move your hips. I won’t stop you.”

With that, you moved back down to suck his cock, choosing not to try and take him fully in your mouth again. You went up and down, your hand wrapped around the base and stroking him in tandem with your mouth. It took him a moment to understand what you meant when talking about his hips, but he soon got it. 

Gingerly at first, he lifted his hips to meet your movements and you hollowed out your cheeks once again to allow yourself to better go down on him. You glanced up for just a moment and Ford had a look of pure bliss on his face. He was finally starting to really get into this as he held your hair back from your face and started moving his hips even more until he was literally fucking your face.

You wished it was easier to look at him so you could see his face, but you had to focus on keeping your teeth covered and mouth hollow so you wouldn’t gag and ruin his pleasure. 

Just based on your one experience with him like this, you wouldn’t take Ford to be the dominant type. He seemed to just enjoy being with you in whatever way felt the best. But right now, his hand was gripping your hair and he was thrusting up into your mouth with such aggression that you couldn’t believe you had ever thought he was easy-going in bed.

You felt him tugging your hair, trying to get you to look up at him. You looked up as best as you could in your current situation. His mouth was wide open, moans spilling out one after the other, and his hair was a mess, like he’d been trying to keep it out of his face by pushing it back over and over and failing horribly. He pulled himself together, just for a moment, to speak. “I’m going to cum in your mouth, and you’re going to swallow every last drop. Do you understand?” He was practically growling at you as he spoke and you couldn’t help but feel a flush of heat through your whole body that settled in your core. You nodded, his cock throbbing in your mouth.

He shoved your mouth back down and that nearly broke you. You hadn’t been expecting it so you gagged, but quickly regained yourself as he fucked into your mouth. You’d forgotten how this all started in the first place, how it had been your idea to do all of this and he had taken over and made it much more than you’d been planning, but you were so invested now. You wanted to be the first person to get to taste his cum, to break him with just your mouth. 

And it seemed like you would be, very soon.

He was getting close, you could tell. Despite his once cold exterior, Ford was not good at hiding how he felt anymore. He was moaning out curses mixed with your name, and what finally broke him was when you let your teeth drag along him, just for a second. He came hard, spurting into your mouth and down your throat as you did your best to keep it all in your mouth.

Eventually, he made his way through it and you let his overly-sensitive cock drop from your mouth. He let go of your hair and you licked your lips, getting the last drops of his release as he watched you, completely exhausted from what had just happened. 

“Are you good?” You asked, sitting up between his legs and leaning back on your hands. He grinned at you, hands behind his head. “Mhm. But it seems like that was a bit of an unfair exchange, don’t you think?” You blinked at him. “I guess so? Not really much we can do about that though. You’re probably exhausted.” He shook his head and moved his hands so he could reach out to you, grabbing at your hips. “I’m not so tired that I can’t return the favor.” 

And at that, he tugged your bottoms off and pulled you forward, first onto his chest and then, after maneuvering your legs and his arms, you were now kneeling over his face with his arms wrapped around your thighs, holding you firmly in place. You didn’t even have time to process what was happening before his tongue was circling your clit. 

You grabbed onto the pillow under his head to keep you steady as he flicked his tongue over your sensitive nub over and over. You could feel yourself get wetter by the moment, a combination of his mouth and your dripping core. His grip on your thighs was tight and you were sure there’d be marks from his fingers on them later, but you couldn’t care less.

Ford was expertly sliding his tongue through your folds, lapping up every drop of you that he could and circling his tongue around your clit. You had to keep yourself from grinding down on him, not wanting to suffocate him. But the way his mouth moved against you was intoxicating and you could only beg for more.

You were almost embarrassed by the noise you made when you felt him suck at your clit. It was a loud whine and you gripped the pillow as you kept yourself upright. A tight, hot coil was forming inside you and you knew you wouldn’t last long. It was ridiculous how easily he could bring you to this point, it wasn’t fair at all.

But when you felt his tongue prodding inside you while one of his hands let go of your thigh to play with your clit, you didn’t care about fairness. 

Knowing everyone else was still in the house only had a tiny impact on how much noise you were making. As Ford’s fingers rolled your clit and his tongue ravaged your core, you felt the coil inside snap and a white hot heat roll through your body as you did your best to keep yourself from screaming his name. You’d blame it on a nightmare if anyone asked.

You nearly collapsed on top of Ford’s face, but he moved back on the bed so you were laying against his chest instead. He rubbed his hands up your thighs and onto your back, tracing gentle circles on your skin as you came down from your high.

“Pretty good for my first try at that, I’d say.” You looked up at him, still trying to gather yourself from the intense climax he’d just put you through. “That was… your first time doing that?” He nodded, still rubbing your back. You were completely shocked. Not that you wanted to think that he’d done that with anyone else, but it seemed like he was an expert at it. 

You laid there for a moment, resting against his chest while he nearly put you back to sleep while rubbing your back. “We should probably get up.” You didn’t want to, but there were things you had to do. You assumed Ford would agree with you.

Instead, he lifted your chin up from his chest and raised a brow. “Or…” He trailed off, letting you fill in the blanks. 

Well, you didn’t have to get everything done today.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry this took so long to publish! i've been working on another piece that'll be published soon, so i'll have more time to work on this one!

Living with the Pines was different than you’d expected. You’d stayed over there a few nights, but being there on a permanent basis gave you a much different perspective of the family.

Every day was a new adventure for the kids. There was rarely a day where they didn’t have something planned. That’s not what surprised you though. It was how involved Stan and Ford seemed to be in everything the kids did. They wanted to go on adventures with them and hear about their discoveries when they couldn’t go. 

It was like they were reliving a childhood they’d lost.

You still didn’t know much about the older Pines’ twins’ past. Stan had mentioned offhandedly at one point that they’d grown up in New Jersey, but that was the extent of your knowledge. Mabel had practically told you her and Dipper’s life story, but you still didn’t know much about Mr. Mystery and the man you were now calling your boyfriend.

You’d been staying with them for a week when you finally decided to ask Ford about his past. It was early in the morning and you rolled over in bed to make sure he was still there rather than having gone off to his lab to work. Thankfully, he’d been sleeping in more often since you’d come to the Shack. 

He started to wake up once he felt you roll over. You rested a hand on his chest to get his attention as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes and looked over at you. “Good morning. You look like you have something to say.” He said with a small laugh as he pushed some hair back out of his face. “Can I ask you something?” Ford blinked at you before grabbing his glasses from the nightstand. He slipped them on and his face brightened as he saw you clearly for the first time that morning. “Of course. Anything.”

You sat up in the bed, crossing your legs, and grabbed a notebook from the stand on your side of the bed. “Oh, you’ve got a list. Must be serious.” He joked as he sat up as well, stretching out his arms as he did. “I’ve been making a list of everything I wanted to ask you since the day I found out you existed. I wanted to wait for the right time to ask, and I figure there’s no better time than now.”

Ford looked impressed at the amount of work you’d put into compiling a list of things to ask him as you opened the notebook to a few pages filled with writing.

“Stan mentioned once that you grew up in Jersey?”

He chuckled. “Yes, that’s true. Although Stanley definitely took on more of the stereotypical New Jersey native personality than I did.” You scribbled down his answer as he watched you intently. “You’re taking this rather seriously.” You glanced up from the notebook to see him looking at you. “Well, it’s important to me that I get to know you better, so I want to take it seriously.” 

You looked down the list of questions to find the next thing you wanted to ask him. “Were you and Stan close growing up?” His silence was telling. “When we were Dipper and Mabel’s age, yes. But after high school, we grew apart and didn’t speak for a very long time.” You didn’t want to push, but it felt like there was something else going on. “Why did you grow apart?” 

Ford didn’t seem exactly reluctant to answer, but he couldn’t think of how to explain it without sounding biased. “I had plans to go to college on the other side of the country, and Stanley didn’t want me to leave. He made a brash decision that essentially ruined my chances at getting into my choice school, and I ended up going somewhere else.” It was at that moment you remembered the sweatshirt he’d given to you to wear after you’d first slept together. “Backupsmore?” Ford nodded. “That mostly turned out fine. It’s not hard to shine at a school riddled with mediocrity.” You laughed a bit, imagining Ford at some hippy community college surrounded by people who really didn’t care about academics. It must’ve been an interesting time for him. 

“What did you do after college?” Ford gestured out the window. “I came here. With the grant money I received, I came to the epicenter of the world’s anomalies to live among them. The Shack was originally my home and research center, until…” He trailed off, and you knew he was avoiding talking about the incident. You had no idea what had happened, but the kids had spoken about something that went down between Ford and Stan a long time ago. They never said had actually occurred, only calling it the ‘incident’. You weren’t sure if Ford would tell you about it, but it probably wouldn’t hurt to ask. “What happened?” 

He took a deep breath like he was preparing to say something difficult. “The machine in the basement was part of my research. It was supposed to give me the answers I’d been looking for about the anomalies and where they were coming from but it wasn’t. I had worked with Bill Cipher to make it, and it ended up being a portal for him to use to enter our dimension and wreak havoc. When I found out, I called Stanley in the hopes that I could trust him to hide part of my research so no one would ever be able to power the portal. We got into a fight and…” His voice got quiet and small. You scooted towards him and put a hand on his knee. “It’s okay, you don’t need to tell me if it’s too difficult.” Ford shook his head. “No, you deserve to know. Our fight escalated and I ended up getting pushed into the portal.” 

It felt like the air was ripped from your lungs. Ford had come back to Gravity Falls so suddenly that summer. Had he been trapped in some other dimension for all that time? 

“Ford, I… I had no idea, I’m so sorry.” You slipped your hands up to rest on the sides of his face as you tried to think of what else to say. What could you say? There was no way for you to understand what he’d gone through. He placed his hands over yours and squeezed them gently. “As much as I wish I hadn’t lost that part of my life, my time in the portal answered a lot of my questions and made me a stronger person. Of course, that came with a fair bit of trauma, but I’m getting better every day.” He smiled at you, the smile of a sincere man. “It was actually nice to be able to tell you about all that. I’ve felt like I was keeping a major part of my life secret from you, but now you know. Anything else you want to know?” He seemed so much more relaxed after telling you about the incident and you were still trying to process it. “Well, I’ve got about a million more questions about that, but I’ll ask those later.” 

You looked down the list again and found the one you’d wanted to ask for a really long time. “Who else have you dated? I know you mentioned having a partner back in college, but that was before you told me about the incident.” He laughed, loud and full. You’d never get tired of hearing him laugh. “Well, I can assure you I didn’t do much dating while I was stuck in another dimension with no other humans. The last partner I had was in college like I said. We weren’t together for long though. We met in a physics class, became close friends, and went out a few times. But I think we were both a bit uncomfortable with the idea of being together, despite being interested in each other.” You understood that feeling. You’d had partners before and it was all fairly easy until you had your first girlfriend your freshman year of college. All of the looks and whispers made it hard to do anything together and it didn’t last long. But you wondered what could’ve made Ford have that same feeling.

“Was it just more of a friendly interest between the two of you? Or maybe she liked you, but just wanted to be friends because a relationship was too much to handle in college.” Ford cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his neck. “He.”

You took a moment to realize what he’d meant. “Oh. Oh my god, I’m so sorry, I assumed!” You buried your face in your hands, face burning red with embarrassment. “No, it’s okay! Just another thing you didn’t know. It’s not your fault.” Ford took your hands away from your face. “Not a lot of people know that about me, so you’re in a very special group of people that I trust.” Your face cooled down and you glanced up at him. “I’m actually… the same. I had a similar experience when I was in college. Lots of mean looks and vicious whispers.” Ford rubbed his thumbs over your hands and kissed you on your forehead. “I can’t promise people won’t act like that about us, but if they do, I’ll vaporize them, okay?” He was… probably joking, so you laughed. “Yeah, that sounds good.”

In just a little bit, you’d learned so much about Ford. Knowing what he’d gone through, it made sense why he’d been closed off to you at first. Being alone for so long will do that to a person. And knowing all of that, seeing his willingness to share his past with you, only made you love him more. 

“Is there anything you want to know about me?” It only felt fair to let him ask things about you after you asked so much about him. Ford hummed for a moment, thinking of something to ask. “Where did you grow up?” That was easy enough to answer. “I actually grew up just north of Oregon in Washington. Lived in the Pacific Northwest nearly my entire life.” Ford tilted his head. “Nearly?” You nodded. “I went to New York for school. John Jay College.” He almost looked surprised. “That’s a prestigious university. What did you do there?” You leaned back on your hands and looked up at the ceiling. It had only been a few years since you’d graduated but it felt like a lifetime ago. “Forensics. You know, it’s funny, I spent years studying forensics, got my Ph.D. and everything. But here I am, middle of nowhere Oregon, trying to learn the secrets of the universe instead. Thankfully, I got through school entirely on scholarships, so at least I’m not in debt for an education I’m barely using.” Ford was watching you as you spoke, hanging on to every word. “I had no idea you were so… educated. I mean, I knew you were smart, but it’s rare to find someone else out here with a Ph.D.” You laughed and sat forward once more. “Maybe you’re just not looking in the right places.” Ford scratched at his chin and smiled at you. “Perhaps. I found you without even looking. Who knows who I’d find if I actually looked!” 

You wondered then how different your life might have been if you’d never come to Gravity Falls. If you’d never talked to that lovely girl in your Intro to Wildlife Conservation course who was not only sure that Bigfoot was real, but that he was part of a larger group of animals roaming the northwest region of the country. If you hadn’t picked up a book about anomalies on a whim on a late-night trip to the library during finals week when you didn’t want to study anymore.

If you’d never come to the Mystery Shack.

Maybe your life would be better. You wouldn’t be plagued by an interdimensional demon who wanted to use you to enter your world and wreak havoc on everything you loved. You’d be a forensic scientist for some crime laboratory in Washington or even New York and you would have no idea where Gravity Falls was or who the Pines were.

But life would be so much more boring that way. Ford and Stan and the kids made your life interesting, even if there was a bit of danger to be found in hanging around them. Without coming to Gravity Falls, you’d never have experienced a hint of risk, something to keep you on the edge of your seat. Maybe it wasn’t the best for your health, but you were young and this was the time to take risks.

You kept Ford young too. He’d spent 30 years of his life away from any sort of human connection, and he hadn’t been much of a social butterfly before being sucked into an interdimensional portal either. You were truly the first person apart from his family that he’d made a real connection with and he was all the better for it. He’d never felt more alive than when he was with you and he wasn’t planning on letting that feeling slip away without a fight. 

He knew you wanted to leave, to explore the world and all it had to offer. He wasn’t going to try to convince you to stay, but he certainly didn’t want to lose you. “Can I ask you one more thing?” You glanced over at him. “You can ask me as much as you want.” He pursed his lips, trying to decide how to word his question. 

“When you decide to leave Gravity Falls, would you want me to come with you?” You hadn’t been expecting that. “Would you want to?” You’d been thinking of staying. If Ford thought this place was interesting enough to stay in, maybe it was. But if he was willing to come with you, travel the world with you, you’d definitely consider it more seriously. 

Ford was quiet, thinking about what to say. “I think I would. Stanley and I have done a lot together over the past year and we’ve nearly completed our mission. If I could finish my work on that end, I would love to travel with you.” You felt a weight lift off your shoulders when he said that. “Ford, you have no idea how long I’ve wanted to ask if you wanted to come with me. After all of this, I can’t even imagine being without you.” The older man blinked as if he was processing exactly what you’d said. 

“Do you really mean that?” He almost sounded scared, like he wasn’t sure you really meant it. The gravity of what you had said finally hit you. “I… Well, yeah. I do. I’ve never met anyone like you, Ford. And there’s no other person I would want to have to go through all of this with. You’re capable and smart, and you take care of me above all else. I just want to be able to return the favor. I want to take care of you.” 

Ford’s whole body looked like it lost any tension it had been holding. “I’ve never had someone want to take care of me. I’ve been on my own for so long, I almost forgot how it felt to be able to really trust someone.” He leaned forward, pressing his lips to yours. “I love you. I really do and I feel right saying that.” Ford said against your lips, and you smiled. “You’ve actually said it before. The first night that I stayed with you here, about a week ago, you were falling asleep and you told me you’d protect me and that you loved me.” Ford chuckled and rubbed the back of his head. “Of course the first time I tell someone I love them would happen when I’m half asleep. Well, now I’m saying it while entirely conscious. I love you.”

There wasn’t a single part of you that wanted to hesitate to say it back. You slipped your hands into his and smiled. “I love you too.”


End file.
